I have, for the
past few years, been reading about poisoning and survival. It started with a
news article, I read about a farmer attempting suicide by drinking pesticide.
He owed some money to a moneylender! The story is old and dated, it is also a
story oft repeated. So I will not go into the specifications.
This post is not
about the debt cycle of the poor and impoverished that leads them to poison and
suicide. No this is different kind of poisoning I talk about. Industrial
Poisoning - a lethal killer, a painful death and in many cases a very painful
living!
My awareness and
attempts to understand poison started when I was 8 years old. I remember the
incident so well cause my aunt was in Bhopal Bhopal
This incident
triggered of my reading about industrial poisoning and its prevalence in India India
the list is equally unending pharma companies’ letting toxic waste in the
Nakkavagu stream in Hyderabad , Manjira River
It is a given
fact that the marginalised in the community take the brunt of the poisoning. Even
so, the full extent of the betrayal of the underprivileged in our quest for
development has yet to be appreciated.
The thirst for
growth and profit has led our country down the garden path of industrialization.
It is pointless to discuss the pros and cons of Industrialisation and the
resultant globalisation. Railroads were not built for the benefit of the society;
it was built to transport raw materials for development of, initially, the
British raj then, for the benefits of the corporates. But the railroads now
serve as lifeline to the teeming population in India
However,
development should be sustainable -sustainable both in terms of technology and
inclusiveness. India
Please note that
I am not building a case for protectionism – what I reiterate here is the right of healthy living for one and all. Hence it is extremely important
to address the effects of Industrial poisoning. Following the ‘Polluter pays
principle” many of these issues can be addressed. It does not serve well for
the society if the government works hand-in-hand with the corporates to
write-off the loss of lives as collateral damage of development.
CSR is the
‘in-vogue’ acronym for corporates. CSR is not just about adopting a school/
village. It is about being responsible to the society one exists in. Corporates
need to wake up to this fact.
My astonishment also
stems from our collective ignorance or indifference to the incidents and the
suffering!
Yes we see occassional reports on marches by the victims, some do-good activists and few environmentalists. But this barely makes an impact on us - (and now is targeted as anti- development and even more as anti- national) and the media sensationalises it to such an extent that the feeling of disconnect is intensified. We make indignant noises and write ‘letters to the editor’ and then the issue is forgotten until the next time.
Yes we see occassional reports on marches by the victims, some do-good activists and few environmentalists. But this barely makes an impact on us - (and now is targeted as anti- development and even more as anti- national) and the media sensationalises it to such an extent that the feeling of disconnect is intensified. We make indignant noises and write ‘letters to the editor’ and then the issue is forgotten until the next time.
