Vent which could neutralise lethal gas was not working, witness tells court

Vent which could neutralise lethal gas was not working, witness tells court
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

BHOPAL, JAN 12: Mohan Lal Verma, a plant operator at the Union Carbide Plant here, told a local court on Wednesday that the refrigeration system at the plant had not been working for six months before the Bhopal gas disaster of December 1984.

Deposing as a witness for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the third day of the day-to-day hearing in the court of the chief judicial magistrate, L D Borasi, Verma said that the vent gas scrubber (VGS) which could have been used to neutralise the lethal methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas that leaked from the plant on the night of December 2-3, 1984 was also not working at the time of the disaster. Verma said that even if the VGS had been working, it would not have been possible to use it for neturalising the MIC gas since it had filled the whole area and it was not possible to reach the VGS.

He said that the plant supervisor, Shakeel Quereshi and the plant superintendent, K P Shetty, who were thinking of ways and means to neutralise the lethal gas at one stage suggested that the flayer tower be used for the purpose but this idea was also given up because the gas had filled the entire premises of the plant. Verma, who is presently working as assistant manager with the district industries centre at Hoshangabad, said that he was appointed as a trainee operator in the Union Carbide Plant on March 28, 1977, was promoted to plant operator, grade five, in November 1983 and worked there till July 11, 1985.

The plant operator said that as per an agreement between the plant management and the recognised workers' union, it was decided to bring down the number of plant operators from eight to six. Verma, during cross-examination by Carbide laywer, Prasad Dhakephalkar, denied that he was not on good terms with the plant supervisor, Shakeeel Quereshi. He, however, admitted that Quereshi had not given him any work after November 27, 1984.

Asked if he was present in the plant's MIC gas unit in an unauthorised manner on the day of the disaster, the plant operator said that this was not true since he had not received an orders in writing that he had been transferred from there.

Sub-Inspector Vipin Tiwari, who was posted at the Hanumanganj police station in December 1984, also deposed in the court as a CBI witness. Tiwari verified certain documents pertaining to the post-morterm reports for Nasir Ahmed, Raju, Kamla Bai and Pannalal.