MP: Government Unresponsive even after 10 Bhopal Gas Tragedy Survivors Die of COVID-19

Bhopal: A sense of panic prevails among survivors of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. So far, the novel coronavirus, a disease which attacks the respiratory system, has claimed 10 lives from among the survivors of the gas leak.

Over the last 18 days, the city of Bhopal reported 10 deaths due to COVID-19. All the victims were survivors of the tragedy, and panic has now found its way to the remaining survivors.

The latest victim who fell prey to the pandemic was 70-year-old Razzaq Qureshi, a resident of Putlighar. Qureshi had a history of hypertension and diabetes, and had died at the Hamidia Government Hospital on April 22. His COVID-19 report came back positive two days after his death, said his son.
 
Like Razzaq Qureshi, two other survivors of the tragedy had died on Friday. Sixty-eight-year-old M.S. Qureshi,  a resident of Jumerati and 60-year-old Abdul Gaffar of Bagh Umraodulha died at AIIMS-Bhopal.
 
The former had suffered a paralytic attack in the past and had hypertension. The latter was a diabetic and had a cerebral stroke in the past. Both his son and his wife have also tested positive for COVID-19.
 
The other seven survivors of the tragedy who fell prey to the pandemic in Bhopal are Naresh Khatik, Jagannath Maithil, Imran, Rajkmuar Yadav, Ashfaq Nadvi, Yunus and Riyazuddin.
 
The survivors of the tragedy are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, as exposure to the methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas in 1984 damaged their lungs, kidneys and other organs. It also left them with weakened immunity. Now, diabetes, hypertension and fragile finances add to their woes. More than 250 patients of COVID-19 have been cured in Bhopal so far. However, the gas tragedy survivors are succumbing in the early stages of the virus infecting them.
 
Till date, the city has more than 450 cases of COVID-19 while around 2,000 results are pending.
 
‘NGOs flagged it to the Govt, but in vain’
 
Three days before the lockdown was announced, and a day prior to the first COVID-19 case being detected in Bhopal on March 21, 2020, four activist groups had flagged the issue to the state government, the district collector and the Union Health Minister. In a detailed report, they highlighted how the survivors were more vulnerable to the virus and urged special medical attention for them.
 
Instead, the state government took over the Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (BMHRC) – the hospital meant exclusively for survivors of the tragedy on directions by the Supreme Court in 1998 – on March 23, and converted it into a COVID-19 facility, shutting its doors for the people it was intended for.

Over the next three weeks, no patients were admitted to the BMHRC, neither gas-survivors, nor COVID-19 patients; the hospital remained empty. To challenge the state government’s order, NGOs took up the matter with the court, and the government realised its mistake and made a U-turn. By then, five survivors had already succumbed to the pandemic.

The Madhya Pradesh High Court directed the BMHRC to test everyone who came for treatment to the hospital, after hearing a writ petition which challenged the state government’s order. By then the death toll was seven survivors. The practice, however, is yet to begin.

A complaint has been filed with the Supreme Court monitoring committee that keeps a watch on such hospitals, including the BMHRC, over the issue. Purnendu Shukla, member of the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee, said that the panel had received complaints about non-compliance of the High Court’s order.
 
“Even after the death of 10 gas-hit victims due to COVID-19 in Bhopal, the state government and the Health Department hasn’t started screening of gas survivors. All of them tested positive post their deaths,” said Rachna Dhingra of Bhopal Group for Information & Action (BGIA).

After the deaths, activist groups have stepped up with their demand that the BMHRC and the National Institute for Research on Environment Health (NIREH), both of which have data on the survivors and their ailments, should reach out to them and counsel them on how to avoid COVID-19.
 
Dhingra mentioned that the survivors were suffering from conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), kidney ailments, lung infection, cancer and diabetes, which render them highly vulnerable to the virus infection.
 
“They should have reached out to such gas victims and screened them but nobody cared to do that. The state government should launch a drive to screen the critical gas-hit patients with an immediate affect,” she added.
 
However, neither agency has acted yet. NIREH director Dr. RR Tiwari said they were counseling the survivors till the lockdown was imposed and would continue to do it after it was lifted. 
Ironically, both the BMHRC and NIREH are run by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which is also the nodal agency to deal with the pandemic in the country.

Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, the Health Commissioner of Madhya Pradesh said that the gas survivors were  getting similar treatment to COVID-19 patients. But, since they are more prone to the virus, they should be on alert. “My request is that they report the symptoms early and get tested. Time is very crucial in treatment of COVID-19. If they come late, the risk increases proportionately,” he said.