Bhopal is a city in central India, the capital of the state of Madhya Pradesh. Older learner books sometimes say “the north of India”; on a map it sits in the middle of the country. In English, though, the name is often not about sightseeing. In 1984, poisonous gas escaped from a pesticide factory in Bhopal owned by the American company Union Carbide. More than 3,000 people died in the first days. Many more who lived near the factory became very ill, and in total about 14,000 people have died from that illness. In 2004 the Indian government asked courts in the United States to force Union Carbide to do more — to pay, and to take more of the blame. It is still named as one of the worst factory disasters in the world. In news English, “Bhopal” can mean that night, not only the city. Formal in geography and history.