Bhopal lacked the necessary equipment to do the job. Tests conducted at the initiative of a group of science students indicated the presence of MIC till as late as 0.15 pm on December 5. Regarding water, the Chief Minister announced that sample tests conducted by the Public Health Engineering Department had found that water was perfectly safe, but he nevertheless cautioned residents to boil water before drinking, thereby causing doubts about the credibility of the sample tests. Vegetables were declared fit for consumption but residents refused to believe the government's assurance because it was an open secret that consignments of vegetables and fruits were arriving regularly from the government farm at Pachmari, a hill resort near Bhopal, for ministers and senior bureaucrats. In any case the pernicious effects of the gas on vegetation was manifest. Trees, plants and creepers in the vicinity of the plant were chaired and a little farther leaves had turned brown or a deep yellow.
