The protest against endosulfan in Kerala has become a symbol of struggle against pesticides in India. The pesticide industry is worried about endosulfan as much as it is of its other products. As Dave proudly puts it, "I do not defend just one molecule. I am the president for 200 molecules. We will not ban anything just on the basis that it is banned in other countries.' If endosulfan is banned in Kerala, it could have a cascading effect in the rest of the country. A successful campaign for banning a particular pesticide will fuel the fire for other movements as well in India. More pesticides would be under scrutiny. More communities would feel encouraged to protest. And more pesticides would be on the hit list. That is something the industry cannot afford to lose out on.
There are already reports of a similar problem in Karnataka. The Karnataka Cashew Development Corporation had been spraying endosulfan on its plantations in Dakshina Kannada and Udipi districts since 1987. People in these areas are also suffering from strange diseases (see [2]
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Links:
[1] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/feature-article/business-poisoning
[2] http://www.downtoearth.org.in/full6.asp?foldername=20011031&filename=Misc&sec_id=19&sid=1
[3] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/newspaper/down-earth
[4] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/pesticides
[5] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/plantation-crops
[6] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/health-effects
[7] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/pesticide-industry
[8] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/farmers
[9] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/endosulfan
[10] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/research
[11] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/education
[12] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/legislation
[13] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/human-rights
[14] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/china
[15] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/india
[16] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/kerala
[17] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/kasaragod-d
