SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS

The plant was the site of an accidental release of toxic gas in 1984 that killed thousands of people and exposed an estimated half-million to airborne poisons.

The Central Pollution Control Board reports that underground aquifers around the plant are contaminated with benzene and chloroform, the Hindustan Times reported. Both chemicals can cause headache, nausea and, with high exposure, respiratory problems and coma.

"In some cases, the toxins were found to be several hundred times more than the permissible limits in drinking water", the agency said.

Chemicals remain stored in the plant. Environmental activists like Sunitra Narain, director of the Center for Science and the Environment, accuse the government of failing to deal with the problem.

"The study shows that the site is highly contaminated", Narain said. "The focus of the government is to dispose of the stored waste and ignore the site's contamination. This will not solve the environmental problems from emanating from the UCIL factory."

 BREAKING STORIES

Attractive women = men taking more risks

IED threat increases against U.S. troops

Mosquito would 'vaccinate' against malaria

Obama postponement doesn't upset Indonesia

Seventeen Indonesia volcanoes on alert

Older non-smokers gain most by smoking ban

'Hobbit' flicks to start filming in July

Lawmaker calls for end to death penalty

McChrystal lays out campaign for Kandahar

Genes that aid plant functions studied

Thai protestors targeted for legal action

Five U.S. men indicted for terrorism

Severe drought grips southwestern China

Bank of Japan loosens monetary policy

North Korean leader likely to visit China

Health gap widens in U.S, narrows in China

Sri Lanka general refutes charges

Special forces now report to McChrystal

Google weighing options in China

Strike kills militants in North Waziristan