The Indian government on Monday asked the country's Olympic officials to raise the issue of Dow Chemical's sponsorship of the London Games in a row over the firm's links to the Bhopal gas disaster.
The sports ministry said it wanted the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to be informed of protests in India against the deal with the US company due to the 1984 Bhopal tragedy which killed tens of thousands of people.
"Strong public sentiment exists in this matter and a number of eminent ex-Olympians have also raised concerns," the ministry wrote to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
"We would advise the Indian Olympic Association to raise this matter immediately with the IOC while keeping the government informed."
IOA acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra said last month that India will not boycott the Games over the deal.
Dow Chemical bought Union Carbide, the firm blamed for the lethal gas leak, in 2001, a decade after Union Carbide had settled its liabilities with the Indian government by paying $470 million for Bhopal victims.
Indian activists have been battling for more compensation money for victims of the gas tragedy.
The protests have been led by Shivraj Chauhan, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh state where Bhopal is located, who has urged India not to attend the Games.
Former Indian Olympians including hockey player Aslam Sher Khan and athlete Milkha Singh have also spoken out against the deal.
Dow Chemical, which is sponsoring a fabric shroud to be installed on the main Olympic Stadium, says all liabilities over the disaster have been resolved.
Thousands protested in India on December 3, the 27th anniversary of the industrial disaster, blocking trains travelling to and from Bhopal station and pelted stones at police forces.
London Olympic chief Sebastian Coe has defended the Dow Chemical sponsorship deal but Labour politician Ken Livingstone, who was mayor of London when the city won the right to host the Games, has urged a rethink.
Source: AFP South Asian Edition
