We Spent Months With India’s Sugar Cutters. Here’s WhatWe Found
Indebted workers, facing brutal working conditions, are pushed to get hysterectomies as a treatment for routine ailments. Sugar mills disclaim responsibility
Women who cut sugar cane in the Indian state of Maharashtra are getting unnecessary hysterectomies, often as a way to keep working, undistracted by periods, pregnancies or gynecological checkups.
My colleagues and I traveled across the impoverished district of Beed, which is home to many migrant sugar-cane workers. We visited tiny villages and met laborers in their homes. We talked to their employers, visited sugar mills, interviewed doctors and reviewed medical records.
What we found was a brutal system of labor that exploits children, encourages child marriage, keeps families in debt to their employers — and culminates with women feeling they have no choice but to get hysterectomies.
We interviewed women who cut sugar cane for companies that supply household brands including Coca-Cola and a major franchisee of PepsiCo, which have helped make the state a powerhouse for sugar, one of India’s most important industries.
Source Link : https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/24/world/europe/india-sugar-sterilization-takeaways.html
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