Bhopal gas tragedy: Supreme Court refuses to interfere with M.P. HC order on disposal of hazardous waste of Union Carbide

Supreme Court refuses to halt disposal of hazardous waste from Bhopal gas tragedy, directs aggrieved parties to approach High Court.

The Supreme Court on Thursday (February 27, 2025) refused to interfere with the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s order on disposal of hazardous waste of Union Carbide.

The Supreme Court refused to stay today’s trial run of disposal of hazardous waste at M.P.’s Pithampur and also asked the aggrieved parties, including civil society members opposing disposal of waste, to approach the HC which is seized of the matter.

The petitioners had challenged the transportation and dumping of hazardous chemical waste from the Bhopal gas tragedy site at Pithampur.

The High Court order had come a day after the Supreme Court, on February 17, decided to examine pleas challenging its decision to allow the transportation and disposal of 337 metric tonnes of waste from the Bhopal site to the Pithampur facility. The top court had also issued formal notice to the Union government, the State of Madhya Pradesh and the State’s Pollution Control Board.

A Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai, on February 25, agreed to hear the case today after the petitioners made an urgent oral mentioning that a “trial run” of 10 metric tonnes of waste was going to be made on February 27.

Justice Gavai had addressed the State counsel of Madhya Pradesh that the Court was not going to intervene unless the transportation and dumping of the waste was proved to be a hazard to the local population of Pithampur.

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