Container trucks carry toxic waste after collecting from the Union Carbide factory for disposal at the Pithampur Industrial Waste Management Facility.
Credit: PTI Photo
Bhopal/ Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh: Amid growing Opposition to the disposal of Union Carbide waste in Pithampur, the Madhya Pradesh government on Saturday said it would request the Madhya Pradesh High Court to grant it more time to carry out the task scientifically.
A mob on Saturday hurled stones at the firm in Pithampur where 337 tonnes of Union Carbide waste linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy is proposed to be incinerated, a day after two people attempted self-immolation amid protests.
Prohibitory orders were clamped under Section 163 of Bharatiya Nagarik Surakhsa Sanhita (BNSS) till January 12.
The authorities shifted 337 tonnes of waste from the Carbide factory to Pithampur on Thursday, weeks after the high court pulled up the state government for the 40-year delay in disposing of the waste.
"We don't want this toxic waste in our area," is the refrain of locals at Tarpura, a village adjacent to Pithampur's waste incineration unit.
Some locals claimed that when ten tonnes of Union Carbide waste was disposed of at the Pithampur facility on a trial basis in 2015, it led to contamination of soil, underground water and water sources in nearby villages.
The incineration of a huge quantity of toxic waste will be hazardous for humans as well as the environment, the villagers fear, even though the Madhya Pradesh government has sought to assure them that there would be no harmful consequences.
The administration has issued prohibitory orders in the 100-meter radius around the waste disposal unit in Pithampur and deployed a large police force.
"Our demand is that the toxic waste from Union Carbide factory should not be incinerated in Pithampur," Kailash Sharma, a resident of the village, said.
Bhaya, a youth from Tarpura village, said, "We want this waste to be sent back to Bhopal."
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the government would inform the high court about the circumstances and difficulties before going ahead with disposal.