News In Brief

Union Carbide halts output of gas that killed Indians

Union Carbide Corporation has halted production and shipment of the poisonous gas that killed hundreds of people after a leak at a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, Sunday night, the company says. It has sent officials to India to discuss compensation for victims.

Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said his government would in future not allow production of ''dangerous'' material in heavily populated areas.

The death toll has risen to 1,000, two doctors said yesterday. Dr. Parveen Chaudhary and Dr. S. K. Srivastava said they personally counted more than 500 bodies and received fatality reports from other doctors totaling another 500.