The charming capital of Madhya Pradesh sprawls out in an increasingly haphazard fashion around two picturesque lakes and on seven hills. Founded in the 11^th century, Bhopal was the capital of the Hindu kingdom ruled over by the Parmara dynasty but what you get to see of Bhopal dates back to the 18^th century. It is an interesting city, a mixture of the traditional and contemporary. The old city with its crowded markets, narrow alleys, beautiful palaces, old havelis (manors) and fine mosques, lies juxtaposed with the well-planned new city of broad avenues, modern buildings and well planned residential colonies.

The city was the site of the world’s worst industrial disaster till date. On the cold winter night of 3^rd December 1984, as the city slept, toxic chemicals leaked from a tank in the factory premises of Union Carbide and deadly fumes of Methylisocyanate (MIC) gas engulfed the residents of the neighbouring areas. The morning after saw thousands dead or dying. The city administration and the industry cleaned up their act, but the sullen silence of the defunct factory and the pain and suffering of the survivors are constant reminders of those grim days.