If the news headlines and reports over the past few days are any indication, the Government finally seems to have woken up to the negative results of the fallout of the verdict of the Bhopal Gas tragedy. The Group of Ministers has finally submitted its recommendations which include not only extradition of the former Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson but also a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation package for the victims. The proceedings of the GoM dominated the news primarily because Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had directed them to submit their recommendations to the Cabinet within a deadline. The proceedings over the last few days once again reveal how the Government always has a kneejerk reaction after a tragic incident and its failure to put in place a foolproof system of checks and balances which avoids such lapses.
One wonders that if it was not for the media with news headlines highlighting the issue, would the Government have taken any action at all. It is high time that the Government becomes more sensitive towards such issues. On the other hand the ruling Congress party started an internal blame game, with senior leaders blaming one another about what went wrong and how Anderson was allowed to leave the country after the incident. Now that media has highlighted the issue forcing the Government to swing into action, the Union Cabinet must take a comprehensive view of the issue once it gets the recommendations of the GoM. The Cabinet perhaps can work on a comprehensive plan to ensure that such tragedies are not repeated in the future and that a dedicated agency is formed to deal with such industrial disasters - both for prevention and timely relief and rehabilitation. The Government should not view this as an isolated development and rather use it as an opportunity to plan for the future.