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    ISAS Briefs

    Quick analytical responses to occurrences in South Asia

    165 : The Bhopal Tragedy Verdict: Can India Handle Industrial Disasters?

    Amitendu Palit, Head (Development & Programmes) and Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the ISAS

    24 June 2010

    The recent verdict on the Bhopal Gas Tragedy of 1984 has drawn attention to India's legal safeguards for handling industrial catastrophes. This paper discusses the existing shortcomings for fixing liabilities in industrial accidents in India. Arguing that the Bhopal case highlights the failure to apply the principle of 'polluter pays', the paper concludes that industrialisation without safeguards can have disastrous consequences.