The Madhya Pradesh high court on Friday directed the central and state governments to furnish on March 17 the details of the plans for the removal of 'toxic wastes' lying inside the closed Union Carbide plant at Bhopal.
A bench comprising Chief Justice R V Raveendran and Justice S S Kemkar was hearing a public interest litigation filed by social worker Alok Pratap Singh.
The court also ordered notices to be served to Union Carbide of the US and Eveready India Limited. The two firms have to file replies on March 17, the court said.
Counsel for the petitioner Naman Nagrath contended that even after over 20 years of the gas disaster, the state and central governments had not taken steps to remove thousands of tonnes of toxic wastes.
Underground water of nearby villages and wells had been contaminated and thousands of cattle had died after consuming the poisonous water, he said.
