Bhopal:
The Bhopal gas tragedy is a story that shows up the worst in man - corporate cover-ups, criminal negligence and acute political lapses.
If that has led to unimaginable suffering, in the midst of that, there are stories of those who risked their own lives and continue to do so for wider notions of justice.
Twenty five years ago, the Bhopal railway station, next to the Union Carbide plant, turned into a gas chamber by midnight of December 2.
It was a blinding gas, which killed many on the station instantly. Others choked, including Ghulam Dastagir - the Deputy Station Superintendent on duty at the time.
Twenty three of his railway colleagues had already died.
Dastaghir realised that something was very wrong, but he didn't run away. Instead, he alerted the senior staff to suspend all train traffic to Bhopal.
But the Gorakhpur-Kanpur Express was already standing on a platform, packed with passengers. Its departure time was 20 minutes away.
Breaking all rules, and after informing all railway systems, he made a life-saving decision.
"He could barely stand and breathe, nor was he able to talk. But without taking permission from anyone, he risked his life to flag off the train. If he had not done that imagine the magnitude of the casualty," said Manzoor Ahmed Khan, former colleague of Dastaghir.
That night, Dastaghir saved the lives of hundreds of people. He spent his last 19 years in and out of hospitals; his death certificate says suffering from diseases because of direct exposure to the deadly Methyl Iso Cyanide (MIC) gas.
Another such brave heart was Abdul Jabbar, who was 28-year-old when the gas tragedy struck the city. Today, he has lost nearly 50 per cent of his vision, his lungs are shrivelled up, but his fight for the gas victims continues.
He is also instrumental in reviving the criminal case against Union Carbide, which was dropped by the Supreme Court in 1989.
"He taught us to fight, to live otherwise not many people really bothered about us," said Hamida Bi.
When most people, especially the new generation wants to put this bad memory behind them, the world gradually losing interested in their plight. But people like Jabbar are only too determined to keep the issue of better compensation and justice for the victims alive.
If that has led to unimaginable suffering, in the midst of that, there are stories of those who risked their own lives and continue to do so for wider notions of justice.
Twenty five years ago, the Bhopal railway station, next to the Union Carbide plant, turned into a gas chamber by midnight of December 2.
It was a blinding gas, which killed many on the station instantly. Others choked, including Ghulam Dastagir - the Deputy Station Superintendent on duty at the time.
Twenty three of his railway colleagues had already died.
Dastaghir realised that something was very wrong, but he didn't run away. Instead, he alerted the senior staff to suspend all train traffic to Bhopal.
But the Gorakhpur-Kanpur Express was already standing on a platform, packed with passengers. Its departure time was 20 minutes away.
Breaking all rules, and after informing all railway systems, he made a life-saving decision.
"He could barely stand and breathe, nor was he able to talk. But without taking permission from anyone, he risked his life to flag off the train. If he had not done that imagine the magnitude of the casualty," said Manzoor Ahmed Khan, former colleague of Dastaghir.
That night, Dastaghir saved the lives of hundreds of people. He spent his last 19 years in and out of hospitals; his death certificate says suffering from diseases because of direct exposure to the deadly Methyl Iso Cyanide (MIC) gas.
Another such brave heart was Abdul Jabbar, who was 28-year-old when the gas tragedy struck the city. Today, he has lost nearly 50 per cent of his vision, his lungs are shrivelled up, but his fight for the gas victims continues.
He is also instrumental in reviving the criminal case against Union Carbide, which was dropped by the Supreme Court in 1989.
"He taught us to fight, to live otherwise not many people really bothered about us," said Hamida Bi.
When most people, especially the new generation wants to put this bad memory behind them, the world gradually losing interested in their plight. But people like Jabbar are only too determined to keep the issue of better compensation and justice for the victims alive.
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