VOA标准英语2008年-US Chemical Giant Faces Hurdles in India Due to

By Steve Herman
Bhopal, India
08 January 2008

Dow Chemical, the world's second-largest chemical manufacturer, is facing difficulties trying to expand in India. The company is haunted by the 1984 leak of methyl isocyanate, one of the most lethal¹ chemical compounds invented by man, from a Union Carbide pesticide² factory in the Indian city of Bhopal. Dow bought Union Carbide in 2001 and many Indians want Dow to take responsibility for the 1984 disaster before it is allowed to increase its operations in India.  VOA correspondent Steve Herman reports from Bhopal. 
 
A lingering stench hovers³ over Dow Chemical's attempts to become a major player in the booming Indian market. Many Indians hold Dow responsible for the 40 tons of methyl isocyanate that leaked in Bhopal on December 3, 1984, and for not paying adequate compensation for the thousands killed and disabled.

Despite repeated requests, Dow declined to provide a company official for an interview. The company's Web site states that because it did not own or operate the Union Carbide plant at the time of the disaster, Dow bears no responsibility for it.

That argument does not wash with many people here.

Yawar Rashid is an aristocrat⁴ and businessman of the Muslim royal dynasty that ruled Bhopal for two centuries.

"People know the association of Union Carbide and Dow, so people would definitely be upset because people are very emotional about this subject in Bhopal," Rashid said.

The memory of what happened early that morning in 1984 remains⁵ fresh in the mind of Dr. H.H. Trivedi. Rushing to a hospital emergency room to treat countless⁶ patients suffering acute respiratory syndrome⁷, the internist himself was exposed to the toxic⁸ gas, and he still suffers from shortness of breath.

"As a physician still I feel it - what is the meaning of being a doctor when I am not able to do justice to the patient? I'm helpless - helpless and depressed⁹. Sometimes it makes me really feel sad," Dr. Trivedi said.

Jawaharlal Nehru University Professor Kamal Mitra Chenoy has long criticized the lack of accountability for the tragedy. He says Dow is the only entity¹⁰ the Bhophal victims can look to for compensation.

"Union Carbide sold out, and therefore they ran away from their liability," Prof. Chenoy noted¹¹. "The government of India has put the entire onus¹² on Union Carbide, which no longer exists. So the only entity that can take any responsible is Dow Chemical. That is why there is this anger with Dow Chemical. There is no one else."

Activists¹⁴ have urged engineering graduates and students from the country's elite¹⁵ institutes of technology to refuse job interviews with Dow on moral grounds.

Chenoy says at some of the universities Dow, which has annual sales of nearly $50 billion and employs 43,000 people worldwide, is finding doors closed to its recruiters.

"Bhopal has become a symbol of dangerous foreign technology and carelessness towards the victims of a tragedy," Prof. Chenoy said. "So it has enraged¹⁶ a lot of people in India, and that is why these young people are moved by the dimensions of the tragedy."

Dow has said it wants to triple its investment in India over the next couple of years, to the $1 billion level. The company plans to open a regional research and development hub this year in Pune, which is eventually to handle half of the company's global R & D.
 
Dow also wants to open new manufacturing plants in India. Last year, it discussed a multi-billion-dollar joint¹⁷ venture with a major Indian conglomerate¹⁸, Reliance Industries.  

Here at the site of the 1984 disaster, there has yet to be a full cleanup. Union Carbide's old pesticide manufacturing units are slowly rusting¹⁹. Cattle and goats graze on the contaminated property, which is now under state control.

Activist¹³ groups say the groundwater, which is used for cooking and bathing by residents of a nearby slum, is toxic.
  
A half billion-dollar settlement, approved by India's Supreme²⁰ Court in 1989 and which the chemical company and its Indian subsidiary paid promptly²¹, absolved²² Union Carbide of further civil liability. The company also agreed to pay for a hospital and fund it for eight years.

But critics say by the time the award trickled²³ down to those permanently²⁴ disabled by the gas, the average claimant received only a few hundred dollars.

Union Carbide, some of its directors - including former chairman Warren Anderson - and the company's Indian subsidiary still face criminal charges of causing death through negligence²⁵. But the case has languished²⁶ in the Bhopal District Court since 1992.

Union Carbide and Dow have refused to acknowledge court summonses. Critics say India's government appears reluctant to pursue the case.

Being blocked from a major developing market like India could adversely²⁷ affect Dow's business.  Business consultants²⁸ say it is essential for multi-national corporations to move much of their operations to lower-cost centers in the developing world. If Dow is not able to expand in India, one of the world's largest and fastest-growing markets, it could be at a disadvantage vis-a-vis its competitors. 

International activists such as Tim Edwards, a trustee of the Bhopal Medical Appeal, say Dow will face stiff resistance to its expansion until it takes responsibility for the gas released over the central Indian city.

"It's difficult to see how Dow is going to be able to expand into India if it's unable to hire technical and engineering staff locally," Edwards said. "If Dow can't expand into India then its plans to save its business in relation to rising energy prices are going to be in severe jeopardy²⁹."

Dow itself is under fresh scrutiny³⁰ here. India's Central Bureau of Investigation³¹ raided offices of a Dow subsidiary five months ago. The raids followed allegations of bribes³² being paid to Indian regulatory officials to facilitate licenses³³ for Dow pesticide products. Dow last year paid a $325,000 penalty to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to settle an S.E.C. investigation into those same payments.

Dow has also garnered³⁴ some strong allies here, including corporate³⁵ titans of the Tata and Reliance conglomerates³⁶, and some top government officials including Commerce Minister Kamal Nath.
 
They are urging an out-of-court compromise for the Bhopal claims, in order to pave the way for new investment by Dow in India.

1 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

2 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。

3 hovers   

鸟( hover的第三人称单数 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• A hawk hovers in the sky. 一只老鹰在天空盘旋。
• A hen hovers her chicks. 一只母鸡在孵小鸡。

4 aristocrat   

n.贵族，有贵族气派的人，上层人物

参考例句：

• He was the quintessential english aristocrat.他是典型的英国贵族。
• He is an aristocrat to the very marrow of his bones.他是一个道道地地的贵族。

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

7 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

8 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

9 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

10 entity   

n.实体，独立存在体，实际存在物

参考例句：

• The country is no longer one political entity.这个国家不再是一个统一的政治实体了。
• As a separate legal entity,the corporation must pay taxes.作为一个独立的法律实体，公司必须纳税。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 onus   

n.负担；责任

参考例句：

• The onus is on government departments to show cause why information cannot bedisclosed.政府部门有责任说明不能把信息公开的理由。
• The onus of proof lies with you.你有责任提供证据。

13 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。

14 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

16 enraged   

使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤

参考例句：

• I was enraged to find they had disobeyed my orders. 发现他们违抗了我的命令，我极为恼火。
• The judge was enraged and stroke the table for several times. 大法官被气得连连拍案。

17 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

18 conglomerate   

n.综合商社，多元化集团公司

参考例句：

• The firm has been taken over by an American conglomerate.该公司已被美国一企业集团接管。
• An American conglomerate holds a major share in the company.一家美国的大联合企业持有该公司的大部分股份。

19 rusting   

n.生锈v.（使）生锈( rust的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• There was an old rusting bolt on the door. 门上有一个生锈的旧门闩。 来自辞典例句
• Zinc can be used to cover other metals to stop them rusting. 锌可用来涂在其他金属表面以防锈。 来自辞典例句

20 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

21 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

22 absolved   

宣告…无罪，赦免…的罪行，宽恕…的罪行( absolve的过去式和过去分词 )； 不受责难，免除责任 [义务] ,开脱（罪责）

参考例句：

• The court absolved him of all responsibility for the accident. 法院宣告他对该事故不负任何责任。
• The court absolved him of guilt in her death. 法庭赦免了他在她的死亡中所犯的罪。

23 trickled   

v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Blood trickled down his face. 血从他脸上一滴滴流下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The tears trickled down her cheeks. 热泪一滴滴从她脸颊上滚下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

25 negligence   

n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意

参考例句：

• They charged him with negligence of duty.他们指责他玩忽职守。
• The traffic accident was allegedly due to negligence.这次车祸据说是由于疏忽造成的。

26 languished   

长期受苦( languish的过去式和过去分词 )； 受折磨； 变得（越来越）衰弱； 因渴望而变得憔悴或闷闷不乐

参考例句：

• Our project languished during the holidays. 我们的计划在假期间推动得松懈了。
• He languished after his dog died. 他狗死之后，人憔悴了。

27 adversely   

ad.有害地

参考例句：

• We commented adversely upon the imbecility of that message of telegraphic style. 我们对着这条电报式的愚蠢的留言发泄了一通不满。
• Widely fluctuating exchange rates may adversely affect international trade. 浮动幅度很大的汇率可能会对国际贸易产生有害的影响。

28 consultants   

顾问( consultant的名词复数 )； 高级顾问医生，会诊医生

参考例句：

• a firm of management consultants 管理咨询公司
• There're many consultants in hospital. 医院里有很多会诊医生。

29 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

30 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

31 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

32 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

33 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

34 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句

35 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

36 conglomerates   

n.（多种经营的）联合大企业( conglomerate的名词复数 )；砾岩；合成物；组合物

参考例句：

• At the surface, radioactivity of the conglomerates is locally as high as 30 X background. 在地表，砾岩的局部地段的放射性高达30倍本底值。 来自辞典例句
• The conglomerates failed to understand that books could not be sold like soap. 这些联合大企业不懂卖书不象卖肥皂那样。 来自辞典例句