THE SIGNIFICANT DROP IN GROUNDWATER LEVELS DUE TO COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES, CONTINUES TO BE THE REASON FOR WORKABLE ISSUES BECOMING JUDICIAL MATTERS
Even as India experienced its worst drought in the last 40 years in 2009, the Coca-Cola Company continued to extract precious groundwater from water-stressed areas across India – severely hampering access to water for communities around its plant, including farmers.
While Coca-Cola is busy spending hundreds of millions of dollars globally to manufacture an image of itself as a company that is a leader in “water conservation”, the reality on the ground tells a very different story. Coca-Cola is a major contributor to the water shortages in some of the areas in which it operates.
Coca-Cola has located many of its bottling plants in India in areas that were already water-stressed. When asked to share the environmental impact assessments it says it conducted prior to locating these plants, the company refuses, citing “legal” and “confidential” reasons.
In the village of Kala Dera near Jaipur, ground water levels have dropped by over 22 metres in the nine years since Coca-Cola started operations in the area. They dropped just 3 metres in the nine years prior to Coca-Cola’s arrival. A study by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), funded entirely by Coca-Cola and forced upon the company by an international campaign, concluded that Coca-Cola was a significant contributor to the water crisis in Kala Dera, and recommended that Coca-Cola shut down its bottling plant, relocate the plant or bring in water from outside the area.
The company has chosen to ignore the study and its recommendations. In the village of Plachimada in Kerala, one of Coca-Cola’s largest bottling plants in India has been shut down since March 2004 as a result of the community accusing the company of water depletion and pollution.
Even as India experienced its worst drought in the last 40 years in 2009, the Coca-Cola Company continued to extract precious groundwater from water-stressed areas across India – severely hampering access to water for communities around its plant, including farmers.
While Coca-Cola is busy spending hundreds of millions of dollars globally to manufacture an image of itself as a company that is a leader in “water conservation”, the reality on the ground tells a very different story. Coca-Cola is a major contributor to the water shortages in some of the areas in which it operates.
Coca-Cola has located many of its bottling plants in India in areas that were already water-stressed. When asked to share the environmental impact assessments it says it conducted prior to locating these plants, the company refuses, citing “legal” and “confidential” reasons.
In the village of Kala Dera near Jaipur, ground water levels have dropped by over 22 metres in the nine years since Coca-Cola started operations in the area. They dropped just 3 metres in the nine years prior to Coca-Cola’s arrival. A study by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), funded entirely by Coca-Cola and forced upon the company by an international campaign, concluded that Coca-Cola was a significant contributor to the water crisis in Kala Dera, and recommended that Coca-Cola shut down its bottling plant, relocate the plant or bring in water from outside the area.
The company has chosen to ignore the study and its recommendations. In the village of Plachimada in Kerala, one of Coca-Cola’s largest bottling plants in India has been shut down since March 2004 as a result of the community accusing the company of water depletion and pollution.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
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An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM B-School Detail
