TECHNO-LEGAL IMPACT OF BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY Dr. Asit K Patra Disaster Management Institute Bhopal

The MIC Accident (BGT) 41 T MIC release Cold winter midnight of 2nd – 3 rd December 1984 Between 00:40 and 02:30 AM approx. At 30m (100ft) height Moved as a 10m (30ft) high wall Covered residential areas, main hospitals, railway station, 65 sq. km. area (25 sq. miles) Approx immediate deaths, over 200,000 suffered Over more died since, over 120,000 still suffering UC continued to deny any long-term effects

* Protective equipment which should have prevented or minimised the discharge was out of action or not in full working order * The Refrigeration System which should have cooled the storage tank was shut down. * The scrubbing system which should have absorbed the vapour was not immediately available. * The flare system which should have burnt any vapour which got past the scrubbing system, was out of use. *The high temperature and pressure on the MIC tank were at first ignored, as the instruments were poorly maintained. High temperature alarm did not operate as the set point had been altered and was too high. The MIC Accident (BGT):Technical Reasons

New paradigms used are: Inherently safer design Clean technologies Green chemistry Green technology Process intensification BRITEST (Best Route Innovation Technology Evaluation and Selection Techniques) After-Effects: Changes ushered in by Bhopal Accident

Research Areas Researching in process safety management Good science based legislation instead of knee-jerk reactions Getting chemists and chemical engineers together in the early stages of developments. Increase in student numbers and research funding Active research in universities and industry CFD modeling of fire, explosions and gas dispersion Explosion Prevention and suppression After-Effects: Changes ushered in by Bhopal Accident

Legislation Dramatic changes since Bhopal EU, India, USA, most other countries enacted numerous laws Encouraging inherently safer practices Third world countries accepting transfer of technology

Actions by Industry Reduced storage inventory significantly Process Hazard and Risk Assessment Standards of safety uniform across a corporation regardless of plant location Vigorous training, including of top bosses

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