Months After Incineration Of Union Carbide Toxic Waste, Disposal Of It’s Ash Awaited
indore : Nearly five months after toxic waste, soil and packaging materials linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy were incinerated at a facility in Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh, nearly 900 tonnes of ash produced in the process still remains undisposed. The incineration of all 358 tonnes of materials from the defunct Union Carbide plant (337 tonnes of toxic waste, 19 tonnes of contaminated soil and 2.2 tonnes of packaging material) was completed in early July this year, six months after the consignment was brought to the unit from Bhopal.
Officials said the waste was burned using a scientific process in an incinerator where lime and other materials were mixed, producing about 900 tons of ash.
They said the state government plans to bury the ash produced in an under-construction landfill cell on the premises of the Pithampur plant located near Tarpura, a village of about 20,000 in Dhar district.
But about two months ago, the Madhya Pradesh High Court directed the state government to find an alternative place to dispose of the ash, saying it was “unacceptable” to dispose of the ash close to human habitation.
The ash is currently stored safely in the facility’s sealed storage shed, according to officials.
At least 5,479 people died and thousands were injured after highly toxic methyl isocyanate gas leaked from Union Carbide’s pesticide plant in Bhopal on the night of December 2-3, 1984; This made the event one of the largest industrial disasters in the world.
The Jabalpur bench of the high court on October 8 this year rejected the proposal to bury the toxic waste ash in the landfill cell constructed on the premises of the Pithampur plant, stating that the plant was too close to human habitation.
“The current containment area of toxic ash close to human habitation is unacceptable by this court,” the HC said.
In its decision, the court referred to an interlocutory application filed by the intervener, which stated that tests had found mercury levels in the toxic ash above the permissible limit.
The HC was filed by the intervener explaining that tests conducted on the toxic ash revealed the presence of mercury, which was above the permissible limits declared in the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board’s report dated August 12, 2025.
He also directed the state government to submit a report showing alternative areas for conservation of this ash.
In these circumstances, the state was directed to prepare a report specifying alternative sites for containment and also to inform the court whether a global tender had been floated to obtain the best technical expertise of companies/agencies that would have perfect technical competence in carrying out work of this nature and had dealt with similar cases related to the containment of toxic chemical waste.
Government officials refuse to comment on the destruction plan, saying the matter is a court order.
However, an official speaking on condition of anonymity told PTI on Tuesday that the contract given to a private company for disposal of Union Carbide waste included burying the ash in a special storage cell within the Pithampur plant premises and all safety standards were followed during this construction.
He said that the construction of this landfill cell is in the final stages.
Pithampur, about 30 km from Indore, is a major industrial area in the state. This industrial park houses around 1,250 units employing thousands of workers, including migrant workers from various states across the country.
Social activists in Pithampur are not in favor of burying the ash in the landfill cell of a waste disposal unit adjacent to human habitation.
Hemant Kumar Hirole, president of local organization ‘Pithampur Bachao Samiti’, said that toxic ash should be disposed of in a secluded area as in case of an accident, a malfunction in the landfill cell could cause serious harm to the human population and the environment.
Hirole’s petition is among five petitions heard simultaneously by the HC regarding Union Carbide waste.
“Currently, we have no information whether the state government has selected an alternative site for the disposal of the toxic ash. The state government should announce the situation soon.” he said.
Over the past four decades, various plans to dispose of toxic waste from factories in India and abroad have been made and canceled due to protests. But it was finally incinerated and reduced to ashes at a waste disposal plant run by a private company in Pithampur this year.
State Pollution Control Board officials claimed that emissions of particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen fluoride and nitrogen oxides, as well as mercury, cadmium and other heavy metals during burning of factory waste were found within standard limits.
They also stated that incineration of Union Carbide factory waste at the Pithampur plant did not cause any adverse health effects on the plant employees or surrounding residents.
The waste was transported to the Pithampur plant, about 250 km from Bhopal, on January 2 this year. This led to many protests in Pithampur. Protesters expressed concerns about the potential harm that disposing of this waste could cause to the human population and the environment; This was an allegation that the state government flatly denied.
