Bhopal

ED conducts raids at 11 premises of several liquor contractors in MP

The investigation was initiated by ED on the basis of an FIR against the Liquor Contractors, for causing loss to government revenue to the tune of Rs. 49,42,45,615 through forgery

Cooperative movement suffered due to policy inaction in past: Amit Shah

In a veiled swipe at previous Congress-led governments, Union minister Amit Shah said on Sunday that the cooperative movement had remained in shambles as laws were not tweaked for years and "almost died" until the Modi government took decisive action. Addressing a state-level cooperative conference in Bhopal, Shah said the erstwhile governments never considered bolstering the cooperative sector. On the occasion, an agreement was signed between the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and Madhya Pradesh State Co-operative Dairy Federation to enhance milk production in the state. "For years, the cooperative movement was moving slowly and turned almost dead. Looking at the cooperative movement nationwide, it was uneven (in the past)," he said. Highlighting the challenges, Shah said the cooperative movement had remained in shambles as laws were not tweaked accordingly. He said the movement gained traction only after 75 years of independence when Prime Minister Narendra Modi formed

HC allows govt to dispose of Union Carbide's waste after successful trials

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Thursday allowed the state government to dispose of the chemical waste from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal at a Pithampur plant after it was told that a trial incineration did not cause any adverse consequences. The four-decade-old hazardous waste shall be disposed of in a safe manner at the plant in Dhar district within 72 days, said a division bench of Chief Justice S K Kait and Justice Vivek Jain. The government had asked for 72 days to complete the process. Some local organisations in Pithampur were opposed to the disposal of the waste near the town, but the government, in its affidavit filed before the court on Thursday, said the three trials of disposal were successful and did not lead to any adverse impact. The court then directed the government to ensure that all safety measures were taken, and dispose of the waste. The government was asked to file a report on June 30, said senior advocate Naman Nagrath, representing petitioner

Second trial incineration of Union Carbide waste likely to begin Wednesday

The second round of the trial incineration of the waste linked to the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy at Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district is likely to begin from Wednesday, officials said. Preparations for the second round continued on Tuesday. As part of the plan to dispose of 337 tonnes of waste from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, it was transported to the disposal plant run by a private company in Pithampur, about 250 km from the state capital, on January 2. The Madhya Pradesh High Court had ordered that trials for the disposal of this waste be conducted in three rounds with adherence to all safety norms, and also directed that reports of all three tests are to be presented before the court on March 27. Srinivas Dwivedi, regional officer of the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), told PTI, "The first round of incineration of 10 tonnes of Union Carbide factory waste at the Pithampur waste disposal plant began on February 28 and ended on March 3 (Monday). The ..

Next step on Union Carbide waste disposal depends on SC's orders: Official

The government authorities will wait for the Supreme Court's directions before proceeding with the plan to dispose of 337 tonnes of waste from Bhopal's Union Carbide factory at a waste disposal unit in Pithampur, a senior Madhya Pradesh government official said on Tuesday. On the intervening night of December 2 and 3, 1984, highly toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal. At least 5,479 people were killed and thousands were crippled. It is considered as one of the world's biggest industrial disasters. "The next hearing in the matter of disposal of Union Carbide waste is scheduled in the Supreme Court on February 27, and we will wait for what direction the court gives in this hearing," Indore Divisional Commissioner Deepak Singh told PTI. The administration's next step regarding the plan to dispose of Union Carbide's waste will depend on the instructions of the apex court, he said. The commissioner's statement came after the Supreme Court on

MP investors' summit: NTPC, Dabur, Reliance & others pledge investments

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the summit, said Madhya Pradesh is becoming a preferred business destination while adding that this is the right time to invest in the state

Housing sales in Bhopal up 10% to 3,565 units in 2024: PropEquity

Housing sales in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh, has risen 10 per cent to 3,565 units during the last year while the growth was 38 per cent in value terms to Rs 2,344 crore, according to PropEquity. Real estate data analytic firm PropEquity data showed that sales in Bhopal's primary residential market stood at 3,565 units in 2024 as compared to 3,238 units in the preceding year. In terms of value, the housing sales in Bhopal rose to Rs 2,344 crore last year from Rs 1,703 crore in 2023. Further, PropEquity attributed the higher growth in sales value to rising input cost due to an increase in prices of land, labour and construction materials. Moreover, the developers are launching more premium and luxury housing projects, leading to higher sales value. PropEquity has recently released the data for 15 major tier-II cities where total housing sales rose 4 per cent to 1,78,771 units in 2024 from 1,71,903 units in the preceding year. In value terms, the sales increased by 20 per

MP HC allows 'trial run' of Union Carbide waste disposal at Pithampur

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Tuesday allowed the state government to carry out a trial run of the disposal of 40-year-old chemical waste from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal in Pithampur area of Dhar district. The incineration at a disposal plant inside the industrial area of Pithampur will be carried out in three phases from February 27, Advocate General Prashant Singh told reporters here after a court hearing. The government on Tuesday filed a compliance report, sought by the high court in January, about the steps it had taken for creating public awareness about the waste disposal process, he said. Locals in Pithampur are fiercely opposed to the planned disposal, near their town, of the waste linked to the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy which killed more than 5,000 people. It has carried out an awareness campaign and now a trial run of the disposal should be allowed, the government requested the court. As per the HC order, the trial run will be carried out in three ...

Bhopal cracks down on begging: First FIR filed against almsgiver, beggar

This move comes after the Bhopal District Collector issued an order banning begging and giving alms in the city on February 3

VECV opens new manufacturing unit in Bhopal, begins Eicher Pro X deliveries

Vehicles rolling off the all-women final assembly line at this brand-new facility were delivered to leading players in the rapidly transforming Indian logistics industry

Investigation confirms bird flu as cause of cranes' death in Jaisalmer

An investigation report from a laboratory in Bhopal on Wednesday revealed that the Demoiselle cranes found dead recently in Jaisalmer had died from bird flu, an official said. The Jaisalmer district administration has declared the Luneri pond area of Degrai Oran an infected hotspot and is taking effective steps to prevent the spread of the infection, officials said. On January 11, the bodies of six cranes were found in the pond area of Degrai Oran, followed by the discovery of two more dead cranes on January 12. The viscera of all eight dead birds were sent to Nishad Lab in Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) for examination and the reoport received on Wednesday confirmed that bird flu was the cause of death. A joint team from the Animal Husbandry Department, Forest Department, and Medical Department has been formed to monitor the situation. Joint Director of the Animal Husbandry Department, Jaisalmer, Dr Umesh Wrangatiwar, said that there is a complete ban on the movement of the general publ

Probe on after China-made drone found in high-security Bhopal Central Jail

A China-made drone has been found lying inside the high-security Bhopal Central Jail, prompting authorities to launch a probe into it, an official said on Thursday. A guard near B-block building inside the prison spotted the black drone, which was charged and weighed 30 to 40 gm, between 3.30 pm and 4 pm on Wednesday, jail superintendent Rakesh Kumar Bangre told PTI. No one saw the drone landing in the jail premises, he said, adding that prima facie it appears the unmanned aerial device might be of children who were playing with it near the prison. The jail, spread over 151 acres, houses 3,600 prisoners against its capacity of 2,600, another official said. These include 69 prisoners, including 32 associated with the banned outfit Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), who are lodged in a high-security zone of the jail, Bangre said. "We have handed over the drone to the Gandhi Nagar police. They have launched an investigation into the recovery of the China-made drone which was

Bhopal gas tragedy waste: Site inspection clears missing container rumour

Senior officials on Sunday visited the unit in Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district, where 337 tonnes of toxic waste linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy is set to be incinerated, for inspection after a rumour spread on social media that one of the containers carrying the waste had gone missing. Information was being spread through Whatsapp groups that one of the containers carrying the waste had gone missing from the premises, after which a group comprising residents and elected representatives visited the site and confirmed all containers are accounted for, said Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Pramod Singh Gurjar. People must not pay heed to such rumours, Gurjar said. Pithampur Bacaho Samiti convener Hemant Hirole said the delegation, of which he was a part, inspected the site and found all the containers were in place in sealed and unloaded condition. The hazardous waste had reached Ramky Enviro Company, where the incineration will take place, on Thursday. Local lawyer ...

Bhopal tragedy waste disposal: Mob pelts stones at incineration unit

A mob on Saturday pelted stones at the firm in Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district where 337 tonnes of Union Carbide waste linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy is proposed to be incinerated, a police official said. A mob of 100-150 persons pelted stones at the gate of the unit, Pithampur police station inspector Om Prakash Ahir told PTI. A probe is underway to identify those behind the incident and take further legal action, Ahir added. The incident comes a day after the town was rocked by protests against the disposal plan amid a bandh call given by the Pithampur Bachao Samiti. On Friday, a mob of 500-600 persons had marched to Ramky Group's Industrial Waste Management Private Limited premises, where the waste is set to be incinerated, but police managed to disperse them in time. Hours later, the district administration had clamped prohibitory orders under section 163 of Bharatiya Nagarik Surakhsa Sanhita (BNSS) around the premises of the unit. It will be in force till ...

Bhopal toxic waste: 5 cases filed against protesters opposing disposal plan

Madhya Pradesh police have registered five cases against protesters in Pithampur of Dhar district who opposed the planned disposal of 337 tonnes of toxic waste linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy in their town, an official said on Saturday. Protests rocked Pithampur, around 50 km from the district headquarters, on Friday after toxic waste reached Ramky Enviro company, where the incineration is to be carried out. The protests prompted the authorities to impose prohibitory orders under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) banning the assembly of 50 or more persons around Ramky Enviro. Superintendent of Police (SP) Manoj Kumar Singh said five separate cases were registered on Friday night in connection with the protests for disrupting public peace. He said in some cases, people were named, while in others, first information reports (FIRs) were registered against unidentified persons. Singh said normalcy prevailed in Pithampur town on Saturday morning, and all ...

Union Carbide waste disposal: Protests in MP's Pithampur, 2 attempt suicide

The quick response of the crowd likely prevented a tragedy, and the men were subsequently shifted to a local hospital by public and police officers present at the scene

MP CM assures safe disposal of waste linked to Bhopal gas tragedy

Amid 337 tonnes of toxic waste linked to the Bhopal gas tragedy arriving in Dhar from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal on Thursday and ensuing protests, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister addressed "doubters" and said the issue should not be politicised. Yadav asserted the waste comprised 60 per cent mud and 40 per cent naphtol used to make pesticide methyl isocyanate (MIC) and was "not at all harmful". "Its poison lasts for around 25 years as per scientists and this tragedy took place 40 years ago," he said. Highly toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas had leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal in the intervening night of December 2-3 in 1984, killing 5,479 persons and leaving thousands of others with serious, long-term health issues. It is widely acknowledged as the world's worst industrial disaster. Forty years after the Bhopal gas tragedy, 337 tons of waste was shifted from the defunct Union Carbide factory for its disposal at a unit in Dhar district. It .

40 yrs after Bhopal gas disaster, toxic waste leaves Union Carbide factory

Forty years after the Bhopal gas tragedy, the shifting of some 377 tons of hazardous waste began from the defunct Union Carbide factory on Wednesday night for its disposal, an official said. The toxic waste is being shifted in 12 sealed container trucks to the Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district, 250 km away from Bhopal. "12 container trucks carrying the waste set off on a non-stop journey around 9 pm. A green corridor has been created for the vehicles which are expected to reach Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district in seven hours," said Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Department Director Swatantra Kumar Singh. He said around 100 people worked in 30-minute shifts since Sunday to pack and load the waste in trucks. "They underwent health check-ups and were given rest every 30 minutes," he added. Highly toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide factory on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, killing at least 5,479 peop

40 years on, Union Carbide toxic waste set to travel 250 km for disposal

The work to remove 377 metric tonnes of hazardous waste from the now-defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal got underway on Sunday ahead of its planned disposal near Indore. The development comes weeks after the Madhya Pradesh High Court chided the authorities for not taking action despite repeated directions, including that of the Supreme Court, to clear the site in the MP capital. The state of inertia may cause another tragedy, it had said. On the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, the highly toxic gas methyl isocyanate (MIC) leaked from the Union Carbide pesticides factory killing 5,479 people and leaving more than five lakh others with health effects and long-term disabilities. About half a dozen GPS-enabled trucks with specially reinforced containers reached the factory site on Sunday morning. Several workers wearing special PPE kits and officials of the Bhopal Municipal Corporation, environmental agencies, doctors and incineration experts were seen working at the ...

52 kg gold, Rs 9.86 crore cash found in abandoned SUV near Bhopal forest

52 kg of gold and Rs 9.86 crore in cash were found in an abandoned SUV near a Bhopal forest, raising suspicions of links to ongoing raids on real estate businesses