ekam- Catch us if you can!!

It was heartening to read that 7 people were finally convicted(ah,finally!!) for the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. The court proceedings were swiftly carried out in the very short time span of just 26 years and all the guilty rapped in their knuckles as punishment. All 7 were sent out on bail that very evening so that they are free to plot more such disasters.

Just as a recap,almost 35000 people were killed when poisonous Methyl Isocyanate gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory on Dec.2-3 1984. As Stalin once said- a single death is a tragedy,a million deaths is a statistic.So it is, 35000 is just another number. No sooner did the tragedy occur,than the authorities decided that those responsible should go scot-free. After all, the UC was an American company.And,Americans are never wrong. Tremendous political will-power was displayed in not pressing charges against the guilty.

We Indians believe in karma or the cosmic order.35,000 dead??Oh!!that's sad....but what is in our hands? what can we do? Its divine will.So,we let it go. But,the grim echo of the tragedy can still be felt in Bhopal. Children are still-born or born with congenital defects.

Investigators were sent to investigate the causes and the resultant damage(need i mention that it was just an eye wash, an investigation just for filing a report saying investigation was done,almost a joke). There still exists an atmosphere of secrecy around this whole affair(The mysterious affair at bhopal-might make a good title for a poirot novel!!). People continue to suffer. Indeed, a job well done!!