India Marchers Protest Coca-Cola Pollution, Water Use

(ENS) VARANASI -- A march between two Coca-Cola bottling facilities 250 kilometers (155 miles) apart is underway to focus public attention on problems the protesters say have been created by the Coca-Cola company in India.

Thousands of people are expected to take part in the march and rally between the Coca-Cola bottling plants in Ballia and Mehdiganj, both in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The 10 day march began Monday in Ballia, and organizers plan that it will end at a rally in Mehdiganj, near the holy city of Varanasi, on November 24.

Marchers are calling for the revocation of Coca-Cola's license to operate because of hardships created for communities as a result of water shortages and pollution created by the Coca-Cola company.

But Coca-Cola India says that all 25 of the India Division's company owned bottling plants have gained the international standard ISO 14001 Environment Management System certificate, the internationally recognized standard of Environmental Management.

"We have been able to achieve this due the unwavering commitment and belief demonstrated by all our associates in protecting, preserving and enhancing the environment," says India Division President Sanjiv Gupta.

But the march comes after a series of defeats for the Coca-Cola company across India, through orders by the courts and various government agencies. On December 16, 2003, for instance, the Kerala High Court directed Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Private Limited to find alternative sources of water for its bottling plant at Plachimada in Palakkad.

Communities living around the bottling facilities are experiencing severe water shortages, and the remaining scarce groundwater, along with the soil, has been polluted by Coca-Cola's practice of dumping its wastewater into the nearby fields, the demonstrators say.

"Drinking Coke is like drinking farmer's blood in India," said march organizer Nandlal Master of the nongovernmental organization Lok Samiti and the National Alliance of People's Movements.

"Coca-Cola is creating thirst in India, and is directly responsible for the loss of livelihood and even hunger for thousands of people across India," said Master. "Water and land are essential to life, and challenging Coca-Cola is a fight for our survival. We have to shut it down."

Coca-Cola has become the target of numerous communities across India who are demanding that the company shut its bottling facilities because of water shortages and pollution.

The single largest Coca-Cola bottling facility in India, in Plachimada, Kerala, remains shut because the local village council refuses to issue it a license to operate. Community leaders from Coca-Cola affected communities across India are joining the march and rally in Uttar Pradesh.

There are also irregularities in the manner in which Coca-Cola has acquired the land for its bottling facilities, and many farmers have yet to be compensated for the use of their land, the protest organizers say.

"Coca-Cola will pay for its crimes in India and internationally," said Amit Srivastava of the India Resource Center, an organization that works with local groups in India to coordinate the campaign internationally. "We will take this battle to where it hurts Coca-Cola the most - the U.S. and the European Union, its largest markets."

Srivastava has just returned from an October trip to the UK where he took the Coca-Cola demonstration from Bristol to Liverpool and from Glasgow to London.

Srivastava says that farmers in India are using Coca-Cola as pesticide. Hundreds of farmers in Andhra Pradesh and Chattisgarh are spraying Coca-Cola directly on their crops, with amazing success. "Using Coke to destroy pests is also more cost-effective than using other branded pesticides, and forecasts are that soon, thousands of farmers in India will be using Coca-Cola as pesticide," Srivastrava said.

Yet in January, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages' Dasna unit near Delhi, was awarded the "Golden Peacock Environment Management Award 2004." The award for excellent environment practices and effective control of environmental impact was presented at a gala function in Bangalore on January 24 by Karnataka's Industries Minister.

The annual award winner is decided on the basis of a rigorous assessment procedure, which includes a visit to the facility by a team of experts.

Speaking at the award ceremony, Gupta said, "At Coca-Cola we are committed to preserve, protect and enhance the environment and this simple belief guides us in everything that we do. We will continue to further improve our systems and are confident of making a significant positive impact on our environment in times to come."

Coca-Cola will have to prove that claim by early December, at least in Rajasthan. On November 3, Chief Justice Anil Dev Singh and Justice K.S. Rathore of the Rajasthan High Court directed "Coca-Cola, and all other manufacturers of carbonated beverages and soft drinks, to disclose the composition and contents of the products, including the presence, if any, of pesticides and chemicals, on the bottle, package or container..." within 30 days.