Ban the poison

A long time ago in USA a drug was discovered which reduced the birth pain. Many women who have had enough of these pains volunteered to experiment the drugs. The religious conservatives cried foul, as it opposed the biblical concept that women were cursed by God to suffer at birth. The volunteers had a smooth birth. But to their horror the babies suffered from many deformities. It shook the conscience of a nation. The drug was subsequently banned.

At this era of rule of corporate, humankind is bound to suffer from the immeasurable greed of a few individuals. But then the government comes as a check to protect a few lives or at least guarantee justice.

But India offers a different set of norms when it comes to corporate genocides. The victims of the infamous Bhopal Gas Tragedy have received no justice till date. Our Nuclear bill doesn’t hold the private companies liable in case of a nuclear mishap. Now the government has broken all senses of decency when it voted against the ban of the dangerous chemical Endosulphan.

Endosulphan is a chemical used as pesticide for cashew nuts in the northern districts of Kerala. Soon after its first application people in the vicinities of the farms developed medical conditions. The children born resembled a catastrophe worse than a nuclear accident. Even to this day the evil has not left the land. I would request my readers to search for the images online to come to a clear grasp with the situation.

Ever since then the people of Kerala and activists have been calling for a ban on the drug. The National Council submitted a report implicating Endosulphan on the mishap. But the first report was ignored and a second one ordered with no bound time frame. 80 countries around the world have banned Endosulphan. Only three studies have favoured the use of Endosulphan. Interestingly all the three were published by the manufacturing firm.

Yesterday all over Kerala, people from all walks of life, irrespective of religion and politics joined hands in asking the Centre to ban Endosulphan. But yesterday Centre laughed at the suffering of the innocent by opposing the ban in Geneva. When 80 countries have banned Endosulphan why does our government insist on feeding the people with it. When almost every study have confirmed the danger in its use, what further report is our government waiting on.