40 YEARS AFTER THE BHOPAL ACCIDENT (INDIA) OTHER ACCIDENTS AND OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH (OHS)

Abstract

Dear readers,
It is with great respect and joy that I address each of you. It is known that throughout history, since the emergence of the so-called Industrial Revolution, which began in the United Kingdom of Great Britain around the year 1750 until the present day with Artificial Intelligence, commercial and industrial activity, whether with small companies or large economic conglomerates, has inexorably provided social, economic and political evolution for the benefit of humanity with the emergence of services, goods and products that have increased the social well-being of society, with the stimulus and emergence of the Global Consumer Society, but have also provided the means of production and services, often unsafe, which have led to countless work accidents, to the direct detriment of workers, who have often been mutilated or lost their lives, and these accidents have also caused repercussions and environmental damage to communities close to production and service units. The theme explored in this work is not intended to be a Manual on Occupational Health and Safety, but, on the contrary, its brief objective is to analyze the repercussions of the work accident that occurred on 12/03/1984, therefore, 40 years ago, in the city of Bhopal, the capital of the State of Madya-Pradesh, in central India, when a toxic cloud of methyl isocyanate caused the death of thousands of people, originating in a Unit (Plant) of the Industrial Complex of the Company Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL). The other objective is to analyze Other Accidents and the evolution of Legislation and the repercussions for Occupational Health and Safety (OHS). It should be noted that the Bhopal Accident (1984) is considered the worst industrial disaster in history, with more than 4,000 deaths and approximately 500,000 people exposed to methyl isocyanate gas (MIC), a highly toxic substance that affected several small towns located around the UCC Factory.
It should be noted that the effects, lessons and learning resulting from the Bhopal Accident, India (1984), as well as the Flixborough Accident, England, United Kingdom (1974), which this year completes 50 (fifty) years and is considered the first major accident in the petrochemical industry, and also the Seveso Accident, Italy (1976), forced the evolution of International Labor Legislation and the repercussions for Occupational Health and Safety (OHS). The Gran Circus Norte-Americano Fire in Niterói (RJ), Brazil, in 1961, which killed 503 (five hundred and three) people, and the Kiss Nightclub Fire in Santa Maria (RS), Brazil, in 2013, which killed 242 (two hundred and forty-two) people, were also included. Although these institutions are not engaged in industrial or commercial activities, due to the high number of fatalities, they had employees who should also be protected by the Law and by Personal Safety Equipment (PPE) and were also victims of the aforementioned accidents.
The International Labor Organization (ILO), a multilateral agency of the United Nations (UN), was not immune to the winds that began to blow in favor of environmental protection, turning its attention to the issue, especially since the 1972 Stockholm Convention and the industrial accidents with serious environmental repercussions mentioned above. This concern was reflected in its Conventions and Recommendations, including Convention No. 174 of September 1, 1999, which deals with widespread industrial accidents.
In Brazil, since its evolution from an agrarian country to an industrial country, thousands of work accidents have also been recorded each year. However, to mitigate them, there is a more significant regulation, Law No. 6,514 of December 22, 1977, which amended Chapter V of the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) regarding Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), and also Ordinance No. 3,214 of 06/08/1978, which lists several Regulatory Standards (NRs), which began to be prepared and revised in a tripartite manner, with the participation of the Government, Business Owners and Workers, which represents a great advance in improving working conditions, whether in the production of goods or in the provision of services.
In this perspective, the Federal Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil of 1988, in its art. 1, ensures as foundations of the Federative Republic of Brazil and the Democratic State of Law, citizenship, human dignity and the social values ​​of work and in its art. 7 (item XXII), establishes that it is the right of urban and rural workers, among others, who aim to improve their social condition, to reduce the risks inherent to work, through health, hygiene and safety standards.
Therefore, here, I share the wish for a good read for all who are in possession of this book.
The Author
Brasília, DF, November 2024.
Prof. MSc. René Dellagnezze