- Digital Assessment 1 Case Study Aftermath Of A Tragedy Shortly After Midnight On December 3 1984 Outside Bhopal I 1 (154.49 KiB) Viewed 45 times
Digital Assessment - 1 /Case Study Aftermath of a Tragedy Shortly after midnight, on December 3, 1984, outside Bhopal, India, a cloud of deadly methyl isocyanate gas leaked from a pesticide plant, owned by the Indian subsidiary of Union Carbide. The choking gas covered the town, quickly killing hundreds-including many children, who were less resistant to the gas than adults and forcing Bhopal's 670,000 inhabitants to flee in panic. By the end of the week more than 2,000 people had died from inhaling the gas, and 150,000 more had to be hospitalized for respiratory and eye damage, making Bhopal's 'night of death' the worst industrial disaster in history. Images of stunned families burying or burning their dead and blaming Union Carbide for their agony were broadcast worldwide. There were immediate repercussions for Union Carbide and for the chemical industry as well. The Indian government accused the plant management of failing to take adequate safety precautions and indicated that it held the parent company ultimately responsible. Lawsuits brought by American lawyers on behalf of the victims asked for billions of dollars in compensatory and punitive damages and threatened to send the company into bankruptcy. Union Carbide's stock price plummeted; it halted production of methyl isocyanate at its West Virginia plant that produced the chemical in the United States. Officials in the United States and India called for increased regulation and inspection of chemical processing plants. Many U.S. localities considered passing "right to-know" laws that would require chemical companies to provide detailed information about hazardous materials to the employees who make them and to residents living near the plants. Several companies countered with voluntary right- to-know programmes to head off public sentiment for government regulation. In the wake of protest against Union Carbide in other parts of the world, some multinational corporations claimed that the Bhopal disaster had chilled the international climate for U.S. business. Union Carbide, which had earned an above-average record on industrial safety over the decade or more preceding the disaster, appeared paralysed by the magnitude of Bhopal's suffering. Corporate chairman Warren Anderson, rushed to India to inspect the site and was briefly arrested by Indian authorities. Union Carbide's one hundred thousand employees observed a moment of silence for the dead and injured; many donated money for disaster relief. Top management spent sleepless nights grappling with the company's crushing problems and its uncertain future. Morale at the company was low; production at many plants temporarily dropped. However, while expressing profound sympathy for the Bhopal victims and promising to make a fair restitution, Union Carbide maintained its essential innocence. "There's no criminal responsibility here," said Anderson. (Source Courtesy: Stoner, Management VSP Rao, V Hari Krishna - Excel Books 2002) a Questions: 1. What are the key issues in this case? - 3 Marks 2. What responsibilities does Union Carbide have to the victims of the Bhopal disaster? - 4 Marks 3. What do you think the long-term effects of the disaster will be on the company? - 3 Marks