New Delhi: The Supreme Court today (Oct 26, 2004) approved an action plan for the distribution of Rs 1567 crores among 5.72 lakh victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy that claimed more than 15,000 lives in 1984.

A Bench comprising Justice Shivaraj V Patil and Justice B N Srikrishna approved the welfare commissioner's action plan put before the Court by counsel S Muralidhar and directed that the money be disbursed on "pro rata basis" from November 15 among the 5,72,173 persons whose claims have been settled.

The Court agreed with the welfare commissioner for keeping aside Rs 60 crore from among 1567 crore for payment to victims whose claims numbering more than 11,000 are still in various stages of adjudication.

Twenty years after the deadly Bhopal gas leak disaster claimed 15,000 lives and injured five lakh persons, the Court had on July 19 directed disbursement of Rs 1503 crores of Union Carbide money among them.

The Commissioner informed the Court that the Rs 1503 crores with interest accrued, stands at Rs 1567 crores.

The July 19 order had come on a petition filed by representatives of 36 affected wards at Bhopal, which turned into a graveyard after the leakage of deadly methyl iso-cyanate gas from Carbide factory on the night of December 2-3, 1984.