Despite vast improvement in legislations for chemical industrial disasters and workers safety three decades after the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, there is an urgent need to strengthen institutions, tools of compliance, monitoring and a strict corporate liability regime, says a book on the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. ‘Bhopal Gas Tragedy: After 30 years’, a book brought out by the Centre for Science and Environment has stressed the need to strengthen institutions dealing with flouting of environmental norms by industrial houses. ‘’ As India industrialises with greater frenzy, the lessons of Bhopal must be understood. Despite various legislations in place, India is fast losing the battle of environmental protection,’’ the book said. ‘’In 2011, over 1,000 people had lost their lives in factory accidents and several thousands were injured. While in 2010, ten toxic sites housing thousands of tonnes of hazardous waste were identified by the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests,’’ the book, authored by Sunita Narain and Chandra Bhushan said. ‘’The first thing that must be done is strengthening of institutions. We need to fix what is broken and not make new institutions that add to multiplicity and confusion. The institutions should monitor compliance and enforce their directions. Also, there is a need to improve tools of compliance and enforcement penalties need to be increased and processes made transparent,’’ the book says. Noting that there was no deterrence in the system, the book said,’’The maximum penalty imposed by courts under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act is Rs 10,000 and under EPA, it is Rs 1 lakh. But only courts can impose this penalty. ‘’So what all the boards can do is to either deny the consent to operate or issue closure notice for 30 days. Both the options are not feasible. So, very little is done to act against the polluter. Without effective enforcement, the system is not even worth the paper on which the many forms are filled and filed.’’ It said,’’Clearances required for industrial projects including that for environment, forest, coastal and wildlife, that are key instruments to ensure that environmental damage is mitigated, have become riddled with processes, but without any outcome.’’ Stressing the need to improve tools for compliance and enforcement, the book called for increasing penalties and making processes transparent. “All this cannot be done unless there is a credible, rigorous system for collecting samples as you cannot hold a polluter responsible without proof,’’ the book said. ‘’The bottom-line is that India’s environmental management system is a half done job. It requires to be finished so that we can meet the challenges of growth in a way that is both sustainable and inclusive.Only then will we really learn the lessons of the world’s most horrific industrial disaster in Bhopal,’’ the book said. The book pointed out that the participation of local people in governance needed to be increased.