Ch 8 – Law and Social Justice Notes

Content Structure

1. Laws to protect people in the market
2. Bhopal Gas Tragedy
3. What is a Worker’s worth?
4. Enforcement of Safety Laws
5. New Laws to Protect the Environment
6. Environment as a Public Facility
7. Conclusion

1. Laws to protect people in the market

Many people, like farmers, factory workers, and shopkeepers, work hard to make things we use every day. But sometimes, they are treated unfairly and not paid enough money. These laws help ensure that the relations between the three groups—the worker, consumer, and producer—are fair and not exploitative (unfair). The government makes and enforces these laws to keep people safe and treated fairly and to help everyone live a better life.

(i) The Government Helps Workers

The Minimum Wage law protects workers and ensures they get fair pay.
The government checks workplaces to make sure workers are not underpaid.
Some poor workers are scared to ask for more money because they might lose their jobs.
The government must stop employers from being unfair.

(ii) Laws to Keep People Safe

The Right Against Exploitation says that no one can be forced to work for very low pay or in dangerous jobs.
Children under 14 years old cannot work in factories or mines.

The government enforces laws and ensures social justice. These laws are based on Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution, such as the Right Against Exploitation, which bans forced labour and child labour.

2. Bhopal Gas Tragedy

The world’s worst industrial disaster happened in Bhopal 24 years ago. An American company, Union Carbide (UC), had a factory in Bhopal that made pesticides. On the night of 2nd December 1984, a dangerous gas called methyl-isocyanate (MIC) started leaking from the factory. This gas was highly poisonous and caused serious harm to many people.

A. The Night of the Disaster – Aziza Sultan, a survivor, woke up at 12:30 am because her baby was coughing badly. She saw a white cloud of gas in the room. When she tried to breathe, it burned her lungs and eyes.
B. Massive Loss of Life – Within three days, over 8,000 people died, and hundreds of thousands were badly injured.
C. Poor Families Suffered the Most – Most people who got sick were poor workers and their families. Even today, about 50,000 people are too sick to work. Many survivors still have trouble breathing, eye problems, and other health issues. Some babies were born with disabilities because of the poisonous gas.
D. Company’s Negligence – The disaster was not an accident. Union Carbide (UC) ignored safety rules to save money. Smaller gas leaks had already hurt workers before the disaster, but the company did nothing to fix the problems.
E. Unfair Compensation – UC was responsible, but they refused to accept blame. The government asked for $3 billion in compensation for the victims, but in 1989, they accepted only $470 million. Survivors protested, but the Supreme Court did not increase the amount.
F. Pollution Still Exists – After UC closed the factory, they left behind dangerous chemicals that polluted the soil and water. Now, Dow Chemical, the new owner of the factory, refuses to clean up the pollution, and this is still harming people and the environment today.

3. What is a Worker’s worth?

Foreign companies set up factories in India mainly because labour is much cheaper than in developed countries like the U.S. Workers in India receive lower wages, work longer hours, and get fewer benefits. To save even more money, companies often reduce safety measures, which puts workers at serious risk.

This cost-cutting approach was evident in the Union Carbide (UC) plant in Bhopal. Between 1980 and 1984, the number of workers in the MIC (Methyl Isocyanate) plant was reduced from 12 to just 6. Safety training for workers was drastically shortened from 6 months to only 15 days. Even the night-shift worker position for the MIC plant was removed, leaving the plant unmonitored during crucial hours. These dangerous decisions led to the Bhopal gas disaster.

In contrast, UC’s plant in West Virginia, USA, had strict safety measures, including computer-based monitoring and emergency evacuation plans—none of which were available in Bhopal. This difference existed because Indian workers were seen as easily replaceable due to high unemployment. Many workers had no choice but to accept unsafe jobs, and companies took advantage of this, ignoring worker safety.

Even today, workplace accidents continue to happen in factories, mines, and construction sites because employers prioritize profit over worker safety.

4. Enforcement of Safety Laws

The government is responsible for making and enforcing safety laws to keep people safe. It must also protect the Right to Life (Article 21) of the Indian Constitution. However, in the case of the Union Carbide (UC) plant in Bhopal, the government did not do its job properly.

Government officials refused to recognize the plant as hazardous and allowed it to be built in a populated area. In 1978, when some municipal officials in Bhopal raised concerns about installing a MIC production unit due to safety risks, the government dismissed their objections. They argued that the Bhopal plant provided jobs and investment, making it unacceptable to ask the company to adopt safer technology or procedures.

Despite repeated leaks from the plant, government inspectors continued to approve its operations. This was a failure of their duty to protect the public. Instead of ensuring safety, both the government and private companies ignored the risks.

This situation highlights the need for stronger worker protection laws and better enforcement, especially as more industries—both local and foreign—continue to grow in India.

The government must make and enforce safety laws to protect people and uphold the Right to Life (Article 21) of the Indian Constitution. However, in the Union Carbide (UC) plant case in Bhopal, it failed to do so.

This shows the urgent need for stronger worker protection laws and better enforcement, especially as industries grow in India.

5. New Laws to Protect the Environment

The Bhopal gas tragedy showed that existing laws only protected factory workers but not the general public affected by industrial accidents. Because of this, the Indian government introduced new laws to hold polluters responsible for the harm they caused to the environment.

The courts also supported the right to a clean and healthy environment as part of the Right to Life (Article 21) of the Constitution. In 1991, the Supreme Court ruled in Subhash Kumar vs. the State of Bihar that every person has the right to clean air and water to live a healthy life. The government was also given the duty to stop pollution, clean rivers, and fine those who pollute.

6. Environment as a Public Facility

Courts have taken strict actions to protect the environment, such as shutting down or relocating polluting factories in Delhi. These factories pollute the air and water, harming people’s health. While this reduced pollution, it also caused problems—many workers lost jobs, and others had to travel long distances. Over time, pollution spread to new factory locations, repeating the same issue.

The poor suffer the most from such actions. Slums are removed for city beautification, and pollution is shifted instead of being solved. While a clean environment is important, workers’ rights and safety are often ignored.

A better solution is to help factories use cleaner technology instead of just moving them. The government should support this change and fine companies that continue to pollute. This way, both jobs and the environment can be protected.

Vehicles pollute the air when they release harmful gases. To reduce pollution, in 1998, the Supreme Court ordered all public transport vehicles (like buses and autos) to stop using diesel and switch to CNG (Compressed Natural Gas). This helped clean the air in cities like Delhi.
But even now, air pollution is still high. A recent report says this is because many cars still use diesel, which pollutes the air, and there are now more cars on the roads than before.

When factories shut down, many workers lose their jobs. Some try to earn money by selling small things or working as daily wage labourers. Others find jobs in smaller factories, but these places often have very poor working conditions and fewer safety rules, making work even more difficult and unfair for them.

Rich countries send their dangerous factories to developing countries like India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. They do this because these countries have weaker safety laws, making it easier for companies to avoid strict rules and save money. This keeps rich countries safe, but it causes pollution and health risks in poorer countries.
Some of these dangerous factories make pesticides, asbestos, and process metals like zinc and lead. Another risky industry is ship-breaking, where old ships are sent to India and Bangladesh to be taken apart. These ships have toxic and harmful materials, which can hurt workers and pollute the environment.

7. Conclusion

Laws are important to protect people from unfair treatment in markets, offices, and factories. Some private companies try to make more profit by using unfair practices like paying low wages, hiring children, ignoring worker safety, and polluting the environment.

The government’s job is to make and enforce strong laws to stop these unfair practices and protect workers and the environment. If laws are weak or not enforced properly, serious disasters can happen, like the Bhopal gas tragedy.

While the government plays a big role, people also need to take action. For example, people fought for a clean environment, and the courts supported their right to clean air and water. In the same way, people must demand better laws to protect workers, and give them fair wages and safe working conditions, so that everyone can live a better and safer life.