Dear All,
Here is my column in TOI today, on Bhopal. Must say was quite disturbed writing this one. Do read other people’s comments as well as they are often quite insightful. The link is here.
Regards,
Chetan
Dear All,
Here is my column in TOI today, on Bhopal. Must say was quite disturbed writing this one. Do read other people’s comments as well as they are often quite insightful. The link is here.
Regards,
Chetan
A column written in a very simple way but 100% true. Really after reading it makes me think how dirty d politics became 2day,thnx 2 our so called rule makers. The ordinary people is is really get suffocated with d politics being played by our rulers.sometimes it feels dat can we do anything about these nasty people of out society. In every field they have d interference. Hope they will ever do favor 2 us i.e d “AAM ADMI”.
awesome article !
@chetan_bhagat Greetings Sir..very well written…undoubtedly d guilty has to pay high n dat too am just hoping dat Obama’s visit would prove to be a brighter step towards dis..!!!
Chetan Bhagat……….a rockstar in the english readin’ novels in India, do u knw u have amazin’ spark in ur pen and whenever i read ur articles, books, columns, i feel bit inspired frm ur writin’. Thanks a lot for puttin’ ur brilliant theories on the social issues. In today’s article, ur point of Leadership btwn Politicans is good but i guess we’ll get good leaders only after 10 years coz most of the present politicans will gonna rest in peace and some of new blood lik Rahul Gandhi, Omar Adbullah, Naveen Jindal, Milind Deora, Deepender Hooda or may be Chetan Bhagat comes in frontline and display there visions for Indian Society. I feel very pathetic for the Bhopal casaulties which happened when i didn’t born itself. And, through my small R&D i feel lik the main culprit is Mr. Arjun Singh who makes Warren Anderson easily flee from the country. Anyways, m not in judicial department so i can’t blame anyone straightaway but here my point is ” Why our Judiciary took so much time for taking crucial decison’s on mass-destruction ?”. Infact, now i also feel like to do some criminal act coz here i can easily extend the case in court and may be one day mine case will be disappear from judicial system coz here people are cheaper then fish ” ma point is 4 corruption”.
Only 2 things of vigorous backing of the conservatives got us in trouble with progressiveness, ” Corruption & Poverty “. And, somehow both r inter-related. Please write some interesting book on these problems of our beautiful nation.
Bhopal was indeed horrifying…the gulf is horrifying in it’s own way too, with ecological ramifications no one can yet predict. I also wish as much comes out of Obama’s visit as you hope. Truth is though, the US has been very good at killing it’s own as well with little to no compensation for a long time. Check out Erin Brokovich (movie)…yea…Julia Roberts won an acadamy award but it was also a true story. Native American reservations exist like little third worlds dotting the map of a first world super power, a super power country that is #46 in infant mortality, etc and etc. Yes, I’m angry about the Gulf, was just as angry with the Exxon Valdez but how much did Alaska get compensated?
Good article Mr. Bhagat, and I respect an Indian viewpoint on the Gulf and the larger picture of the global fat cats getting away with murder…literally. Whether they kill abroad or in their own backyard, in the ocean or on land, the bottom line seems to be the same. BP will go under making restitution, true…but somewhere, somehow…someone else will clear a profit.
Quarter of a century is long thing. Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.
On the other hand,
What could Anderson do when that’s they way country work ? He was doing business, not opened a public trust.
For e.g. Glucose is highly flammable chemical. If care not taken it can create serious tragedy.
Would people buy 10Rs Biscuit instead of 5 rupee when they know extra money they pay goes to securing the people who made it ? – Absolutely not.
Would a politician or quality inspector forfeit their bribe in order to have more secure environment for worker ?
Do worker are ready for less salary in order to have safe workplace ?
Even a company out of all odds, create a better product at better price with less profit – will investors invest in it ? even people buy its share ? never.
the needed change goes way deeper than at corporate level.
an article that is very much close to reality – a touching one.
greetings Mr.Chetan Bhagat.. Culprits should be punished to the
maximum extent of law… Hope president Obama will listen to us!
A very good title for the article. The main difference between both the scenarios i.e. BP case and Bhopal case is the different kind of Governments. Here, in Bhopal, the main culprits were govt officials so the govt didnt take any tough step.
On the other hand, if u look at the financial status of both the companies, they r nt same. BP is one of the largest oil explorers, it can pay that much of money but UC cant.
At the end of the day, a every good piece of writing and comparison. Really liked it.
Chetan, the problem is neither the government nor the union carbide. The problem is numb mindset & poor memory of masses. It is not the first massacre faced by poor indians. But when did it turn into a movement to topple the government? When did we hold the establishment accountable? Tell me Chetan, did u remember this Bhopal tragedy since last 25 years? Its only after this judgement after 25 years that media did a huge hue and cry. This is what the problem is. All the establishments know that the memory of indian masses is poor and the attitude is ‘It’s happenned in his house, why m i concerned?’.
There is no people forum which has the power to ask tough questions. There is no people forum which has power to topple establishment. The people like you who has backing of masses shall represent such forum & ask tough questions on accountability. Mr. Bhagat, this article of your will be read, concerns will be expressed & will be well forgotten. The business will be as usual soon. The establishment knows that & thats why there is no justice. Tell me Mr. bhagat, do u want to take it ahead? Are u ready for it?
Hi Chtan, I am accepting your views, the life in India become cheaper and cheaper.we our selves addict to this type of culture. we need to solve our problems.we, as a big nation acting very slowly on critcal conditions.we need to start our day atleast before dawn, but its not happend in our country.The Bhopal will be the same for your twin sons, and many more.one sadthing about this is they are the people whom we need to responsible.This need to be change. Am admi kuch karna padta hi, not obama.
Hi,
That’s a wonderful and very meaningful article u wrote..
The only way to make people conscious of most devastating of disasters is to present them with an emotional backing.. so that they can feel the pain first hand.. and ur article did just that!
Bhopal gas tragedy is a perfect example of how cheap the lives of Indians really are..
U carelessly build a chemicals factory rite near the habitated areas.. approve its operations for some bucks.. n then thousands of people die.. n all u can think of is how to ensure the perpetrator gets away from the country safely.. bidding him a goodbye!… WTF!
I wish arjun singh n his ‘gang’ had got locked rite there in one of the gas filled homes.. n got wat they deserved…
In our country the politicians will never improve.. i wish they were there to suffer the results of their actions…
How can the accused get away by just paying mere 25,000 bucks.. i guess even a govt clerk can afford that amount easily!
I hope this article shakes the conscience of the public and politicians.. and they take some measures to ensure such a thing doesnt happen again.. or i forsee a bhopal in making with all such nuclear deals being finalised all over the country!
This is my first time i visit here. I found so many entertaining stuff in your blog, especially its discussion. From the tons of comments on your articles, I guess I am not the only one having all the enjoyment here! Keep up the good work.
This happed in 1984 when Mr Arjun Sing was CM. later when Mr Arjun sing was minister of HR , stundents of IIM & IIT were beaten brutly by Mumbai Police near Raj Bhawn. Stundents were protesting agaisnt reservation policy introduced by Mr Arjun sing as HR Minister.
Dear Chetan, I don’t think any body in the erstwhile Union Carbide plant could ever imagine that leakage of MIC would create such havoc. Otherwise, everybody takes care as much as possible. It is a question of awareness on the basis of past incidences or in-depth in-house brain storming and implementation of safety aspects accordingly. Compared to indigenous comapnies, multinationals are more serious in their approach.
its funny reading all comments. no progressive change happen in India is because not everybody could be agree on one point. some thinks this way is better. other thinks that way is better. they waste huge amount of time , what should be done instead of doing it. for a definite progress we need firm opinion and desire to live and die by them. which is not to be seen.
*** lets ask government to completely deny Obama to come India if they do not surrender Anderson. ***
I know many reason against it. I know many reason for it. But progress does not made by finding the perfect path. but to walking ahead whatever the path is.
So, Bhagat Sir, Can you market my extra-ordinary suggestion and lead us ? lets see how many people can take stand, whatever it takes. I am with you.
Another nomination in the Oscars and Bhopal tragedy will bring loads of fortune and fame to some movie director. In our country the best thing that happens after a horrendous incident takes place, is a movie based on the same tragic theme. We can’t truly impute the politicians or the bureaucrats as they are one among us. The voices that invoked the intellectual & uncorrupted authorities to open the files with vigilance during Jessica Lall’s verdict are no more being heard at India Gate now against Bhopal gas tragedy verdict. Reason: Why should we concern about something that has not even affected even a sq/metre area of our state? The ministers are partying with the industrialists and so as we with our close ones. A few more front page news on the issue and victims of the tragedy will reluctantly accept the huge sum offered to them.
“Chetan your writing has a charm to inspire people, hope like always it does the same this time as well”
Mr Bhagat I would only have to agree with you. There is no other sense in this. Indian lives are cheaper than American lives. In fact as u rightly say they are cheaper than lives of American fish. America i would say is taking full care of its citizens men and fish alike. Anderson is after all the citizen of the USA and Union Carbide is American based. So no wonder they are being protected by the US govt. Similarly it is the duty of the Indian govt to protect its citizens. which as we can see it often protects to do. In fact our govt often plays games with our citizens life. In America they would do anything to protect a US citizen’s life. Take for eg 26/11 and how much the FBI and the US govt got involved after Americans were also a part of the target. But in India everyday Indians die in our homeland itself and what happens? News and media create a hype over it for a few days and then we forget about the poor dead souls. We all talk a lot about it but it never seems to go beyond the point of talking. All govts irrespective of the party lines seems to have one thing in common.To satisfy the rich in the country( who are btw not even a handful) and appease the USA. Maybe as u say we can do something and cry out louder than usual when Obama comes. But we must remember one thing it is after all the people of the USA who vote for him. It is they who have brought him to power and it is them that he needs to satisfy and appease. However as we always do lets not get our hopes down.
Tragedies like Bhopal result from a complete system failure i.e.,
1. Safety precautions and Safety procedure failure in Union Carbide.
2. Checks failure in Government.
3. Absence of disaster management plan and infrastructure.
It is difficult to fix up the responsibility on single or few individuals in such cases.As far as I remember, Union Carbide offered huge compensation for victims just after the sad accident. The Government insisted that the compensation may be paid in its coffers rather than to individuals.I also remember that UC paid huge amount to Government that never reached to some of the actual victims through government. However, it is heard in Bhopal that it reached to many non-victims though.
There is no point in comparing figures of 1984 and 2010.It should also be understood that there is no comparison of compensations being paid in US or Europe or in India for various reasons.
The need of the hour is to quickly Identify the actual victims and their dependents and pay them suitable compensations. It is urgent keeping in view 26 years have passed and many of them might have died or may die without compensation.
regards,
Anand Khare
hello sir
i m a huge fan of urs n i hav read all ur novels n i also used 2 read ur articles. The article was very gud n it shows that hw is India working today. U can just try 2 show the real pic of India. May be it can help 2 improve the situation. There is a need 2 change the whole structure of working bt i don’t 9 hw much time it ll take 2 happen.
Waiting 4 more articles n books
Regards
Usha Dabas
I dont know if the MBA did that to me, i always pay attention to why people say the things they said a little more than what they said. So do you do this for Money Chetan?(I dont think you have to because you know better ways to make much more). Do you do this for publicity?(I guess you are more famous as an author, you dont need this). And so that leaves me with the only option – Humanitarian concern, and the message that you send with your actions – Be the Change, I hope it gets to all of us, Loud and Clear.
Take Care
thanx for writing such a magnificient column…
“Very True”. Esp. the line – “The skill of doing business in India is managing the system, not innovation or better products”. Even if you are owning a t-stall, you need to manage with the local development autorities. We all grow up thinking that our hard work and intelligence will pay for us and finally we end up frustated. I guess our kids need to have a subject like ‘Managing System & PR in India’.
Hello sir,
“TODAYS ARTICLE WS INCITING….
BT I THNK DT D INDUSTRIALISTS R NOT D RYT PPL 2 BLAME COZ EVRY1 LONGS 4 N TAKES UP A SAFER,EASIER N A MORE BENEFICIAL WAY,ISN’T IT??….
D REAL CULPRITS R D POLITICIANS WT DO DEY DO??
dey hv transformd d meaning of democracy 2 JUST ‘OF D PPL,& UNFORTUNATELY BY D PPL’N DERE’S NOTHIN FOR D PPL!!!
I,lyk a mad hv been searchin a link 2 get connectd 2 u 4m d past 1 month…
ds is mah first evr convo sort of msg 2 u (if u evr reply 2 it) n m sayin dt i hate u!!!
YES coz ur buks hv turnd me into a “stoutr+chashmish” in just a month….
BT STILL i juzz can’t stop readin ur buk i luv dem!!!!!
ur buks r not juzz “tym-pass sort” dey r AWESOME dey can easily ovrpowr u n den prevent u 4m concentrating on evry work u do!!
GOD!!!ur buks r just so enchanting,dey really make me wonder hw their author wud b!!
ur buks hv evry thng Fun,Romance,seriousness,grey shades(such as ‘proff cherain’N'proff chatterjee’)hw can u manage wid all dat stuff so well???
‘INSPIRD BY U’ if evr i start writting i wud steal words n phrases 4m ur buks M I PERMITTD PLZ??;-)!!!
U R SO PROFOUND AT ENGLISH!!UR AN ‘IITIAN’+ ‘IIMBIAN!!!
HW CUD U STUDY SO MUCH??????
WEL PLZ SAY TANKX 2 UR “SERI”(ur wyf)or watevr in her attractd u otherwise…. Instead off a so vry ‘amazing’ n’ stupendous writer v wud hv got an unrevealed talent sittin at a gas station cheking ryt amt of petrol 4 a ryt amt of money!!!!
THANX 4 GIVING US SO GUD BUKS N MAY V CONTINUE GETING THOSE MASTERPIECES!!
1 OF UR FANS!!
PRAGATI SRIVASTAVA
Hi Mr Chetan,
Its really fantastic article.When Americans care their fish more than the victims of Gas tregdy.What our politicians do.Why these devils (who assissted the culprit a safe escape)not learn any lesson from America Itself.
Any way thanx a lot for sharing the grief of the victims.
Thanx and regards
HI chetan,
THis is a really good article
There is similar article on New york times on Bhopal tragedy http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/17/opinion/17iht-edbowring.html?ref=bhopal
according to me, the whole system has been collapsed,What a tragedy!!!really shamed
What the government has done nothing,helped the guy to run from India.what the court did??nothing 2 years jail term!!!are u kidding??What should people do either go to USA court or UN court??Hoping from USA to give justice whose citizen is involved in this?The ball is in obama court ,I know they will declare package to the people but will people receive the package,i think the govt officials will have again a good time with money.what say>
Please comment
Loved it, always love the way you think and express!
I look forward to read more of your articles
Dear Chetan,
You’re gr8 to convey the society how the tragic was. Articles like this from you may motivates the people who really interests in public affairs and who really love and value a human life!
It is very pathetic to know that our Judiciary or Govt. have gvn a price of 25K for thousnads of scared life!!!
Ask our people to open their eyes and not to happen such a disaster!!! Thanks
Mansoor
Cochin
i got nothing to say about this post..but ijust read 2 states..what’s with the boys always noticing girl’s dresses or their make-up..don’t they know that beauty is eventually gonna fade away and their heart is what that’s supposed to be beautiful…do all boys think alike?
An interesting article Chetan. I used to become very emotional in my early days when I came across this kind of tragedies. But, scenario is being changing as I have not done anything for this country rather than stabilising my career. I felt a kind of guilty nowadays as most of the educationalists in this country are spending their time in reading the artciles and cursing the politicians and fate of the country. You can know the status of the country by seeing the traffic rules and regulations. Corruption is there in every nook and corner, as you have mentioned, the people in this country are cheaper than fish.
What are the steps we are going to take to resolve these issues? How are we going to prevent Bhopal tragedy not to occur in any part of this country? I really don’t have any answers
WELL EXPRESSED Sir. Wish our politicians also had the same feeling towards their citizens
This is precisely something that I was thinking when I heard the news that US government had setup a special fund to help businesses lost due to the oil spill ($20 billion special fund). Now compare this with the Bhopal disaster: close to 15,000 people dead, more children showing symptoms of the gas attack, whole village, water and eco-system destroyed, but only $1500 given to each victim’s family. I agree that a vibrant industrial system is necessary for the whole country, but at what cost ? As you clearly mentioned, the politics-business nexus is a big loss for the people. If the politician cannot fight for the people who is going to fight for them.
I just believe that the media need to play a constructive role pointing faithfully what is wrong with various parts of the society, without patronizing with either business or political community.
The biggest problem among the society is the apathy towards all these situations. How can we cure the apathy ?
wen wil ur nxt book publish
I looted my friend’s eraser in class 5 and I was made to stand on
the bench by my teacher but I guess the Indian judiciary is too kind- they don’t punish someone for committing a carnage. Praveen (I have the same feelings as you have sir-the feelings of an Indian demanding for justice for his fellow Indians).
An impending crisis is awaiting us on the lines of ‘Rajiv Gandhi Bhopal Gas Leak Yojana’, this time it will be ‘Smt. Sonia Gandhi Parmanu Hadsa Yojana’ which will kill at least 10 times more people and none of them will get a deserving compensation thanks to the Governments covert eagerness to pass the Nuclear Liability bill. Better u get prepared for a TOI column for this forthcoming disaster.
read more for information :http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article475974.ece
Off topic.
can you include the link for TOI article in the rss feed ?
Good article. But you seem to be missing the point that the central government (Rajiv Gandhi) and the state government (Arjun Singh) released Warren Anderson under US pressure.
Also who is paying for the compensation for the victims ? The Indian government or Union carbide ?
Rightly said Mr. Bhagat. But America’s double standards would not allow Obama to pay anything which is due to Bhopal Victims and even extradition of Anderson is difficult.
Now a days every one it includes Government officials as well struggling for westward (not upward) mobility. People want to follow west blindly by any means legal or illegal. So for the sake leisure/western education etc officials are ready to oblige anybody who is willing to pay. So Bhopals will continue to come till the date severe punishment is decided by government of India for all citizens of India irrespective of their status found guilty on charges of corruption.
Why is it that the articles are being written and headlines are made in the media only after the things are concluded in a manner not acceptable to the consious of the majority of the people.
And over a time, things are forgotten and a new issue gets highlighted and the life goes on.
Why can’t we, the so called urbanites, english reading janta do something concrete before the isssues gets flared up.
Dear Chetan
This is a hard hitting article. Yes it is the Government that is responcible for the safety of its citizen let them down so callously. I sincerely hope that journalists like you can waken the conscience of the people of this great nation. You have kind of become the icon of the youth so do your best to change the chalta hai mind set
carry on the good work and best of luck
Dear Chetan
This is a hard hitting article. Yes it is the Government that is responcible for the safety of its citizen let them down so callously. I sincerely hope that journalists like you can waken the conscience of the people of this great nation. You have kind of become the icon of the youth so do your best to change the chalta hai mind set
carry on the good work and best of luck
hi chetan…well m not too insightful fr d political issues as d ppl above r. m jst a commnor (mango ppl u knw…)whoz common sense is far under developed in evry political sense, bt i chance to read sm of ur novels recently n i must say dt wtevr u write seems to be coming frm a genuine mango man. congrats buddy! at least i dnt need to hang on to sm silly dictionary to make out d things n dts d best thing abt being a commoner…tc cre!
chethan, bhopal disaster happened 25 yrs back,nothing has changed between now & then in india.You are penalized for killing a pet dog in US,whereas people like salman khan’s can run over the people sleeping on the footpath & still we worship them as our heroes,if that is the case with a normal 2buck worth film actor how can we expect that guys like arjun singh or anderson are punished for this.Value of a human life varies depending on his social status, amithabh gets admitted to hospital for cold/fever & it is a news here & 1000s of people die for govts negligence & nobody cares.Even media is fighting for bhopal issue just to grab some news & attention & the intention is not to help them out. We support you fully if you can lead a moment & raise your voice directly with obama when he tours india.
Regards,
Santosh Matam
Very well written chetan..!! Good comparision..Ok lets think few steps ahead of it.Supposed India would get the responsible person, we should not feel proud.Hundreds of thousands of our money would waste again ,what happened with Kasab case recently.Our judicial system will come up with their decision when offspring of those people would about to die..Our system (and so we )are helpless here..
Very well said,
the mistakes are always meant for the punishments rather the severe one. If it is not done mistakes are repeated again. But our leaders seem to be the culprit. Corruption has engulfed our country. That’s why the contacts work.
Our Govt. organizations need to be much more fast at least at their work. Law amendments are necessary specially in the corporate world. They have to be much more strict. Only then the life of common man will not be cheaper than fish.
it was rocking.
than u 4 making people aware.
Hi,
I don’t have big words to write but all I can say that this was a commendable effort. I had always wondered how come the main perpetrators of the Bhopal Tragedy were let go so easily?
Its heart breaking and especially for kids who’ve lived through it. The Govt. has taken matters of safety too lightly for a long time and now its up to us to make it right, to demand for what is right and what should’ve been done long ago.
very very good article…
Each and ebery word in the column is true.I personally know families who suffered in Bhopal tragedy.their misseries continues and still the culprits are like free birds,rather i would say like vultures looking out for prey.
If our Govt had the guts to put them behind bars,Chethan wont have written this article and i wont have responded.Its painfull to talk of something that happened 16 years back and still the wounds are raw.
Hope for better tomorrow …..
Each and every word in the column is true.I personally know families who suffered in Bhopal tragedy.their misseries continues and still the culprits are like free birds,rather i would say like vultures looking out for prey.
If our Govt had the guts to put them behind bars,Chethan wont have written this article and i wont have responded.Its painfull to talk of something that happened 16 years back and still the wounds are raw.
Hope for better tomorrow …..