Photo Travelogue :
Read first part - Here!
Had 2 literally bribe da caretakers of da very spooky #UnionCarbideFactory #Bhopal, responsible for '84 Gas Disaster pic.twitter.com/oz4F4StXRM
— ? ? NandiniDéka ? ? (@NandiniDeka) November 8, 2015
I had long before made up my mind to visit the Bhopal Gas Tragedy site, while in Bhopal ( in continuation of my Spook Travel series ). The magnitude of deaths there due to the tragedy is mind-boggling, and the survivors still continue to suffer till this date - almost 40 years now. You need to get permission from the Collector's office to pay a visit there. But since, I wasn't aware of it - got to know of it only when I reached the spot, when the people at the gate refused to let me in. Its banned to go there without permission, period! However, an official came by and offered to give me a tour round the place on his bike, provided I paid him 200 bucks ( bribe, eh? ). Thrilled, my efforts won't go in vain, I readily agreed; because, I really really wanted to get a glimpse of the place. Reaching there was however, twisty and turny.
On my return from the Sanchi Stupas, I took a bus and headed back for Bhopal. On my way, we even witnessed a road accident - of a biker bleeding profusely on the road, near Raisen town. I got down at a small outskirts town called Bhanpur, as I was informed the factory would be closer from there. I took an auto who said they knew the place very well...but, well....they took me for quite a ride before dropping me off at the site! Thankfully, they didn't kidnap me :o
get down at Bhanpur town on the outskirts of Bhopal city...
the auto took me via some jhuggy-jhopri colony - short-cut they said, hmph! #grr
till we reached the main road flyover - thank God! phew...
inside, the grounds are still contaminated, hence, advised not to touch anything...
a small video of the tour around the factory, pardon my voice ;-p
this hole in the wall is how people smuggle themselves in and out...how innovative!
the small town across the road which suffered most deaths & physical ailments...
last glimpse of the factory from outside its walls...
The Bhopal disaster, also referred to as the Bhopal gas tragedy, was a gas leak incident on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal. Deaths: At least 3,787; over 16,000 claimed. Over 500,000 people were exposed to methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leak from Union Carbide Factory. The site was abandoned by the company and came into possession of the Madhya Pradesh state government( wiki )
I was overwhelmed by this visit. Although, deaths inside the factory ifself was quite few ( 2-3 ), the whole place had a very spooky feel. Abandoned as it is. I wouldn't like to be alone there, lol. But the tragedy outside of it was what really saddened me. Every family that resides there saw deaths due to the gas leakage - and they were of all ages; young, old and infants too. With a heavy heart, I decided to head back to the city....
Address : Union Carbide Factory : Arif Nagar, Bhanpur, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462001,India, Asia
Read next part - Here! Stay tuned for all my road, rail, flight, cruise & walk trips.
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