VOA标准英语2008年-Tainted by 1984 Gas Leak, Bhopal Seeks Internat

By Steve Herman
Bhopal, India
03 January 2008

It has been nearly a quarter-century since a gas leak at a Union Carbide pesticide¹ factory killed thousands of people in Bhopal. Today, the central Indian city is trying to reclaim² its reputation as a major tourist destination. VOA correspondent Steve Herman reports from Bhopal.

Say "Bhopal" and most people do not think of pristine³ lakes, verdant⁴ hills, wetland wildlife and nearby archaeological wonders.

The image that often comes to mind is of one of the world's worst industrial disasters.

The December 1984 gas leak killed thousands of Bhopal's residents and sickened many more. Since then, the capital of the state of Madhya Pradesh has struggled to lure⁵ visitors back. Few tourists see Bhopal, despite the city's historic palaces, the country's largest mosque⁶, internationally acclaimed⁷ museums and a moderate climate year-round.

For the general manager of the Jehan Numa Palace Hotel, Kamal Bharti, it is frustrating⁸ to see Bhopal equated⁹ with disasters such as the Chernobyl nuclear reactor¹⁰ meltdown, or the World War II atomic bombings in Japan.

"Today if we keep on saying that 'Nagasaki happened' and 'Hiroshima happened' and every year the people take out rallies and the total international media keeps covering those, so what will happen to [the image of] Japan?" asked Bharti.

Bharti and others in Bhopal's tourism industry believe that if the victims of the accident are adequately compensated¹¹, the city's image will be able to move beyond the tragedy.

Activist¹² groups blame the government of India and Dow Chemical, which bought Union Carbide in 2001. They say both have turned a deaf ear to appeals for proper health care and financial aid for disabled survivors¹³ and compensation for families of the deceased.

Tourism officials say some potential visitors wrongly believe that poison still lingers in the air of Bhopal. Such perceptions have kept the city from reaching its full tourism potential.

Yawar Rashid is a member of the Mirazi Khel dynasty, which ruled Bhopal as one of the region's largest Muslim princely states for 200 years until the mid-20th century.

"Especially foreigners, Europeans, they're most skeptical¹⁴ about coming to Bhopal," he said. "You have to get over that aspect although the air is clean and it's healthy and there's no pollution at least compared to the rest of the cities or towns of this size. It's more open, fresher air and a lot of trees."

Hotel manager Bharti believes Bhopal's percentage of tourism visits could expand 20 times if people stopped associating it with the gas leak.

"Eight-five percent are business. And out of [the other] 15 percent, 10 percent are on family and personal reasons. Five percent are the tourist groups. The groups we get are mainly for the Buddhist¹⁵ [pilgrimage] circuit," he explained.

The ancient stupas at Sanchi, some 2,200 years old, are within an hour's drive from Bhopal. Hindu and Muslim historic sites are not much farther and have long attracted religious pilgrims.

To try to boost tourism, state officials plan to increase by six times the number of hotel rooms in heritage properties. Private investors¹⁶ are to be offered long-term leases on up to 60 palaces and forts in Madhya Pradesh for conversion¹⁷ into luxury hotels. Officials, investors and residents all hope such renovations will help restore Bhopal to its former regal reputation.

1 pesticide   

n.杀虫剂，农药

参考例句：

• The pesticide was spread over the vegetable plot.菜田里撒上了农药。
• This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields.这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。

2 reclaim   

v.要求归还，收回；开垦

参考例句：

• I have tried to reclaim my money without success.我没能把钱取回来。
• You must present this ticket when you reclaim your luggage.当你要取回行李时，必须出示这张票子。

3 pristine   

adj.原来的，古时的，原始的，纯净的，无垢的

参考例句：

• He wiped his fingers on his pristine handkerchief.他用他那块洁净的手帕擦手指。
• He wasn't about to blemish that pristine record.他本不想去玷污那清白的过去。

4 verdant   

adj.翠绿的，青翠的，生疏的，不老练的

参考例句：

• Children are playing on the verdant lawn.孩子们在绿茵茵的草坪上嬉戏玩耍。
• The verdant mountain forest turns red gradually in the autumn wind.苍翠的山林在秋风中渐渐变红了。

5 lure   

n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
• He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。

6 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

7 acclaimed   

adj.受人欢迎的

参考例句：

• They acclaimed him as the best writer of the year. 他们称赞他为当年的最佳作者。
• Confuscius is acclaimed as a great thinker. 孔子被赞誉为伟大的思想家。

8 frustrating   

adj.产生挫折的，使人沮丧的，令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's frustrating to have to wait so long. 要等这么长时间，真令人懊恼。
• It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience. 那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 equated   

adj.换算的v.认为某事物（与另一事物）相等或相仿( equate的过去式和过去分词 )；相当于；等于；把（一事物） 和（另一事物）等同看待

参考例句：

• Production costs for the movie equated to around 30% of income. 这部电影的制作成本相当于收益的30%。
• Politics cannot be equated with art. 政治不能同艺术等同起来。

10 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

11 compensated   

补偿，报酬( compensate的过去式和过去分词 )； 给（某人）赔偿（或赔款）

参考例句：

• The marvelous acting compensated for the play's weak script. 本剧的精彩表演弥补了剧本的不足。
• I compensated his loss with money. 我赔偿他经济损失。

12 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

13 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

14 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

15 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

16 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

17 conversion   

n.转化，转换，转变

参考例句：

• He underwent quite a conversion.他彻底变了。
• Waste conversion is a part of the production process.废物处理是生产过程的一个组成部分。