Union Carbide's Bhopal Plant (A, B)

Authors: Spar, Debora L.; Hull, Suzanne; Kou, Julia
Source: Harvard Business School
Year: 2006
Company Name: Union Carbide
Number of pages: 17, 2

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Abstract:

In December 1984, a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, sprung a leak, releasing thousands of gallons of highly toxic gas into the atmosphere. By the time the leak was sealed, over 2,000 people had died. In a series of three excerpts from published accounts, the case covers the events that led up to the tragedy and the aftermath--financial, legal, and emotional--for Union Carbide's management. The case is designed to allow students to explore the complex set of responsibilities that surround foreign direct investment. It enables them to discuss the extent to which Union Carbide's U.S.-based management was responsible for actions undertaken by Indians in India, and then to think of this responsibility in terms of its various components--financial, commercial, and moral. Supplements available (from Harvard Business Publishing).