Pesticides poisonings in India: Implications for business accountability and regulatory reform
PAN India, PAN AP, Public Eye and ECCHR | 16th June 2021
PAN Asia Pacific, together with the Maharashtra Association of Pesticide Poisoned Persons (MAPPP), Pesticide Action Network (PAN) India, Public Eye and the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) invite you to a webinar that sheds light on the quest for justice of a group of Indian farmers who were poisoned by a pesticide marketed by Swiss agrochemical giant Syngenta.
In this webinar, participants will learn more about this emblematic case of pesticide poisoning, the quest for justice and accountability of a group of Indian farmers and the way forward for regulating pesticides use both India and Europe.
Date: Thursday 24 June 2021
Time: 11am CET/ 2.30pm India Standard Time
The webinar will be held in English. Translation to Marathi will be provided simultaneously.
Topics and Panellists
- A deadly pesticide poisoning in rural India – Dewanand Pawar (MAPPP)
- The involvement of a Syngenta pesticide made in Switzerland – Dileep Kumar (PAN India)
- The quest for justice and accountability in Switzerland – Christian Schliemann (ECCHR)
- The need for an export ban and mandatory human rights due diligence – Anina Dalbert (Public Eye)
- SIT report: what’s next? – Narasimha Reddy (PAN India)
- Moderation: Sarojemi Rengam (PAN AP)
Background:
In 2017, hundreds of small-scale farmers and farm workers were poisoned – and over 20 died – in just a few weeks whilst spraying pesticides on cotton fields in the district of Yavatmal in central India. A key product involved was the insecticide Polo, manufactured by Syngenta.
The use of Polo’s active ingredient diafenthiuron is long banned in Switzerland and the European Union but Syngenta keeps selling it in countries where regulations are weaker and less strictly enforced. In 2017, Syngenta exported 75 tonnes of diafenthiuron from Switzerland to India. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigated the poisoning in Yavatmal, identified several policy measures and recommended to ban multiple product formulations that were responsible for most of the deaths, including diafenthiuron. Although temporary bans were adopted, today all products are again available on the Indian market.
In September 2020, Public Eye, ECCHR, PAN India and MAPPP filed a “specific instance” with the Swiss national contact point for the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, on behalf of a group of 51 affected farmers, to demand that Syngenta provide remedy and change its sales practices in India.
Hope to see you at the webinar!
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