by admin | May 25, 2021 | News
Special children with congenital disabilities of Chingari Rehabilitation Centre holding a peaceful candlelight vigil to pay a tribute to the martyrs of Bhopal’s Union Carbide gas leak at Neelam Park on Saturday evening.
By Pervez Bari, Maeeshat.in,
Bhopal: On the eve of 34th Anniversary of 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy a tribute to the martyrs of Bhopal’s Union Carbide gas leak was given by the special children of Chingari Rehabilitation Centre in the form of a peaceful candlelight vigil at Neelam Park here on Saturday evening.
Children with different type of congenital disabilities like cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, muscular dystrophy, impaired hearing, etc. participated in this candlelight vigil. The main motto of this peaceful candlelight tribute was to remember the pain and trauma their loved ones had endured.
These children also want the world to learn a lesson from this tragedy and take preventive measures to avoid the recurrence of any such negligent disaster anywhere else in the world. These children are born disabled due to the poisons of Dow Chemical/Union Carbide and not due to nature. We need to learn from this tragedy and create a world where companies cannot spread such poisons. So that, such disabled children are not born.
Meanwhile, Chingari Trust has, for the last 12 years, been taking care of the children born with congenital disorders to families affected by the poisonous gas leak of 1984 and the ground water contamination thereafter. As of today, over nine hundred such children are already registered with Chingari Rehabilitation Centre, with about three hundred children coming each day to get physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, special education, supplementary nutrition provisions and transportation facilities – all free of charge.
Special children with congenital disabilities being helped to lit candles on the eve of 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy’s 34th anniversary.
It may be recalled here that on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984 Union Carbide pesticide manufacturing factory had spewed poisonous Methyl Iso-cyanate gas whereby 3000 people had perished virtually instantly and over the years more than 25000 have kissed death and the sad saga is still continuing uninterruptedly. About half a million are suffering from the side effects of the poisonous gas and several thousand people have been maimed for life.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Corporate, News
By Pervez Bari
Bhopal: Chingari Trust has been working from the last 11 years for the rehabilitation congenitally Disabled children born in the families affected by the Bhopal Gas Tragedy and subsequent water contamination. Currently, 961 children are registered with the Chingari Trust and out of this 283 children come to Chingari every day and receive Physiotherapy, Occupational therapy, Speech therapy, Special education, Mid Day Meal, Medicines and Pick & drop facility and others facilities free of cost.
Mrs. Champa Devi Shukla, Managing Trustee of Chingari Trust, said: “We are really happy to see lots of positive changes in the children coming to Chingari Trust. Children who were unable to sit have now started running and children who were unable to utter a word are now speaking fluently and getting promoted in education as well. But, we have a deep regret that we are giving these facilities to only 283 children. 961 children are registered with Chingari Trust and many more such children are born in gas and water affected families.”
Mrs. Rashida Bee, Managing Trustee of Chingari Trust, said: “Chingari is an example we have presented in front of this world with limited resources. But, Government has no dearth of resources and could have easily started working on this issue long ago. Government need to restart programs like SPARC, which was closed by the govt due to so called shortage of funds. Under SPARC, survey was done and 2400 children with cardiac ailments were identified. Government should also pressurize Union Carbide/Dow chemical to take responsibility for the rehabilitation of such children.
While explaining about his work Physiotherapist Dr. Rishi Shukla says that from our physiotherapy department about 180 children are getting physiotherapy treatment regularly. Tremendous changes are seen in these children after physiotherapy sessions. About 79 children are now living almost normal lives.
Nosheen Khan (Speech Therapist) telling about the treatment of these children said that we have about 140 Children in our department, who have shown lots of improvement after getting speech therapy. 32 children have started attending normal school after receiving regular speech therapy sessions.
While giving an overview about his work Dr. Siddharth Yadav (Occupation Therapist) says that 48 children are being treated by Sensory integration technique. Among them 17 children have started giving attention to different activities. 14 children have started making an eye contact.
Giving information about special education Mr. Suryaprakash Singh said that 248 children are getting special education from our department out of which 65 children have started going to normal schools and 63 children have started doing their daily life activities.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Finance, News
Survivors of the Bhopal Gas tragedy (file photo)
By Pervez Bari for Maeeshat
Bhopal: The representatives of the four NGOs (non-Government organizations) working for the welfare of the survivors of the Union Carbide Bhopal gas tragedy, world’s worst industrial catastrophe, have charged Madhya Pradesh Minister Vishwas Sarang of misusing funds meant for economic and social rehabilitation of the survivors.
Addressing a Press conference here the organisations presented copies of documents obtained under the Right to Information from the Madhya Pradesh Department of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation which show that close to 60 per cent of the funds meant for providing employment to survivors and their children have been diverted to build drains, roads and parks. Likewise, documents show that almost one third of the funds meant for housing of residents in the vicinity of the Union Carbide factory are also being diverted for the same purpose.
President of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh, Ms Rashida Bee said: “In 2010, Rs.104 crores was allocated to provide jobs to 1 lakh Bhopal survivors and their children. After failing to provide employment to even one survivor in the last 8 years, the Minister is now spending more than 60 crores of the money meant for employment generation on public works that are routinely funded by tax-payers money.”
“All of the 75 crores that the Minister has taken away from the funds meant for survivors is being spent in his own constituency. Survivors of the Bhopal disaster are being robbed to pay for the Minister’s vote gathering plans. To fuel the Minister’s ambitions, the plan to provide safe housing to families living in the contaminated area next to the Union Carbide factory has been abandoned,” said Nawab Khan, president of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha.
Ms Rachna Dhingra of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action expressed concern about the complicity of the Central government in the mis-utilization and misappropriation of funds meant for Bhopal gas tragedy survivors.
“In 2014 we sent hard evidence of misappropriation of Rs. 18 crores meant for economic rehabilitation of survivors to the CBI and to the Ministry of Chemicals that had provided the funds. No action has been taken against the known culprits till date. Documents show that in March this year the Ministry of Chemicals approved diverting of funds meant for survivors after objecting to it for three years.”
“Documents we have got through RTI show that while hundreds of thousands of survivors of Bhopal await relief and rehabilitation, more than half of the funds allocated for their rehabilitation in 2010 remain unspent today. If the Minister was a school student like many of our members, he would have been kicked out for repeated failure.” said Nausheen Khan of the Children Against Dow Carbide.
It may be recalled here that on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984 Union Carbide pesticide manufacturing factory had spewed poisonous Methyl Iso-cyanate gas whereby 3000 people had perished virtually instantly and over the years more than 25000 have kissed death and the sad saga is still continuing uninterruptedly. About half a million are suffering from the side effects of the poisonous gas and several thousand people have been maimed for life.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Bhopal : Angry protests were witnessed in Bhopal on Sunday as the city marked the 33rd anniversary of the gas tragedy that killed thousands.
The decades-old pain was visible on the faces of protesters as they shouted slogans against the state and the Central government and also the Union Carbide Corporation for their apathy and inaction.
Early on December 3, 1984, toxic methyl isocyanate leaked from the Union Carbide Corporation’s pesticide plant here, killing and injuring thousands. Lakhs of people are still affected and many are dying.
A prayer meet was held in Barkatullah Bhavan where tributes were paid to those who died after the gas leak.
On the other hand, several people, under the leadership of Bhopal Group for Information and Action, held a demonstration outside the Raj Bhavan.
The protesters, draped in a white cloth, lay on the road outside the Governor’s official residence since 6 a.m., protesting the timing of the marathon ‘Run Bhopal Run’ which is being held on Sunday. While half of Bhopal is mourning, the other half is celebrating, they said.
The Bhopal Group for Information and Action took out another rally that reached the site of the Union Carbide Corporation plant and announced that they will continue to protest until justice is done.
—IANS
