1.

Bhopal gas tragedy- Case study (Air Pollution)

1. The world’s worst industrial accident occurred in Bhopal city, Mathya Pradesh (M.P), on
the night of 3rd December 1984.
2. It happened at Union Carbide India Ltd, who manufactures some carbonate pesticides,
using methyl iso cyanate (MIC).
3. The reactor got exploded, due to failure of its cooling system and 40 tons of MIC leaked
into atmosphere.
Effects of methyl iso cyanate (MIC)
1. MIC is a toxic gas which affects lungs and eyes and causes irritation in the skin
2. Higher amount of MIC, remove oxygen from lungs and cause death.
Effects in Bhopal
1. The gas (MIC) spread over 40sq.km area.
2. About 5000 persons were killed and 65,000 people suffered from severe eye,
respiratory, neuromuscular, gastrointestinal disorders.
3. Nearly 1000 persons became blind.

2. Palar river pollution-Case study (Water Pollution)

Palar river originates in Nandidurgam of Karnataka state and flows for about 350km
through Karnataka, Andra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Palar supply drinking water for several municipalities, towns and villages in Vellore
district, Tamil Nadu.
Now the Palar is polluter by the effluent of various leather industries which inturn
affecting the agricultural productivity in 40,000 hectares of croplands.
Type of pollutants: Chrome tanning industries discharge large amounts of chemicals like
chromium, calcium, ammonium salts, organic dyes and acids.

3. Arsenic pollution in ground water – Case study (Water Pollution)

West Bengal, Bihar and Bangladesh are severely contaminated by the toxic heavy metal
arsenic.
The states lying in the downstream side of the river Ganga are facing the problem of
arsenic content. Nearly 350 million residents in Ganga basin are exposed to dangerous levels of
the arsenic element in their drinking water.
Sources:
Excessive use of lead arsenate and copper arsenate as pesticides in summer paddy and jute crop
seems to be the major cause of arsenic pollution.
Effects:
1. The local people, who were ingesting low doses of arsenic for 10-14 years, were affected from
white or black spots on the skin, called melanosis.
2. Long exposures lead to bladder and lung cancer.
3. Children are more badly affected by arsenicosis.

4. Itai-Itai disease-Case study (Water Pollution)

The symptoms of Itai-Itai disease were first observed in 1913 and characterized between
1947 and 1955; it was 1968, however, before the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare
officially declared that the disease was caused by chronic cadmium poisoning in conjunction with
other factors such as the stresses of pregnancy and lactation, aging, and dietary deficiencies of
vitamin D and calcium.
The name arose from the cries of pain, "itai-itai" (ouch-ouch) by the most seriously
stricken victims, older Japanese farm women. Although men, young women, and children were
also exposed, 95% of the victims were post-menopausal women over 50 years of age. They usually
had given birth to several children and had lived more than 30 years within 2 mi (3 km) of the
lower stream of the Jinzu River near Toyama.
Symptoms
The disease started with symptoms similar to rheumatism, neuralgia, neuritis, coughing and
anemia.
Effects
1. Weak and brittle bones.
2. Spinal and leg pain is common, and a
3. Waddling gait often develops due to bone deformities
4. The pain eventually becomes debilitating, with fractures
5. Bone weakens
6. Kidney failure and leading to death