Over 350 tonnes of 40-year-old chemical waste from the defunct Union Carbide factory in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal has been completely incinerated at a waste management facility in Pithampur, The Hindu reported.

The incineration process was safely completed at around 1 am at the Ramky Group’s Pithampur Industrial Waste Management plant, Sriniwas Dwivedi, a regional officer at the state Pollution Control Board, told the newspaper on Monday.

The process to bury the ash and other residue at scientifically designed landfill sites will begin soon, he said, adding that the waste residue was currently packed in sacks and kept in a leak-proof storage shed at the plant.

The landfill cells for the burial are being constructed and will be completed by November, Dwivedi said.

“If everything goes well, these residue will also be disposed of by December,” The Hindu quoted the officer as saying. “Before this, the residue will be treated scientifically so that their burial does not cause any harm to the environment.”

Initially, 30 tonnes of waste was incinerated during three trial runs after directives from the Madhya Pradesh High Court. The remaining waste was then burnt between May 5 and the early hours of Monday.

Real-time monitoring of the emissions during the process confirmed that all levels of gases and other particles remained within safe and permissible limits, Dwivedi said.

“We have no information about any adverse effect on the health of people living in the surrounding areas during the incineration of the waste,” he added.

The three trial runs took place on February 28, March 4 and March 10, with burning rates of 135 kg/hour, 180 kg/hour and 270 kg/hour, respectively. The government then stated that the remaining waste could be disposed of under the supervision of the central and state pollution control boards at a rate of 270 kg/hour.

The waste is the result of an accident that occurred on December 3, 1984, when methyl isocyanate and other toxic gases leaked from the pesticide plant of Union Carbide India Limited in Bhopal.

Over five lakh persons were exposed to the toxic gases and at least 4,000 were killed as a result in the ensuing days. Government data suggests that there have been 15,000 deaths as a result of the disaster over the years.

On December 3, the High Court had set a four-week deadline to shift the waste from Bhopal to Pithampur, criticising the authorities for not clearing up the accident site despite directions from the Supreme Court.

On January 2, about 337 tons of hazardous waste from the Union Carbide factory were delivered to the Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district, in 12 leak-proof and fire-resistant containers.

The arrival of the waste in Pithampur was met with outrage by residents and activists. On January 3, two men sustained injuries after immolating themselves in protest.

On March 27, the High Court granted the state government 72 days to dispose of the waste.

On June 4, the Supreme Court declined to halt the incineration process after a social activist approached it challenging the High Court order.

Also read: Why a town in MP is resisting the plan to treat toxic waste from Bhopal’s Union Carbide plant