At least 12 people were killed by police in protests against the Sterlite Copper factory's pollution problems in Thoothukudi. Opposition politicians decried the violence as "state sponsored terrorism."
Image: Reuters/P. Ravikumar
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Indian police said on Tuesday that 12 protestors had been killed after officers opened fire during a demonstration against the Sterlite Copper factory in Thoothukudi, on India's southern coast. Owned by British-based mining giant Vedanta Resources, the Sterlite plant has come under hefty criticism over pollution concerns.
A police official in Chennai, capital of Tamil Nadu state, where Thoothukudi is located, told French news agency AFP: "We have confirmation of 12 people being killed in police firing. We fear the toll may rise."
He added that dozens had been injured.
The incident sparked immediate outrage from opposition lawmakers in New Delhi. Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi called it "state sponsored terrorism."
'Police had to control the violence'
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami announced that he would be launching an official inquiry into the carnage, but said he supported the police.
"The police had to take action under unavoidable circumstances to protect public life and property as the protesters resorted to repeated violence... police had to control the violence," he said in a statement.
He added that the victims' families would be given one million rupees ($14,700) in compensation.
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Thoothukudi is no stranger to violent demonstrations. In 2012, protests against a nuclear power plant in neighboring Kudankulam left one person dead.
The Sterlite Copper factory is similarly no stranger to controversy, as it was forced to shut down in March 2013 after a reported gas leak left hundreds of locals with labored breathing, nausea, and throat infections. Although its is currently non-operational, locals and activists have been protesting for months over the plants alleged contamination of the ground water. The company, which is trying to expand the site, has denied these claims.
Thousands of Indian farmers demand government support
Mass demonstrations by tens of thousands of farmers in India's financial capital Mumbai shed light on the acute agrarian discontent among Indian farmers, who are demanding loan waivers, better prices and land rights.
Image: Imago/Hindustan Times/R. Choudhary
A sea of red flags
The farmers, wearing red caps and carrying red flags, arrived in the city following a six-day trek from Nashik, situated 165 kilometers (103 miles) north of Mumbai. The farmers, the bulk of them impoverished, plan to surround the state legislature of the western state of Maharashtra in Mumbai. Many had walked barefoot in the already soaring March temperatures.
Image: REUTERS
Demanding government support
The farmers want the government to ensure they earn at least one-and-a-half times the cost they incur in producing their crops. They are also demanding that the government waives all farm loans. Many of the protesters are tribespeople who have farmed for generations on land they don't own but are demanding recognition of ownership.
Image: AFP/Getty Images
Working out a solution
The Maharashtra government has said it is willing to consider the demands and is working to find a solution. Last year, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said his government would write off loans to farmers estimated to be worth around 305 billion rupees ($4.75 billion, €3.86 billion).
Image: P. Paranjpe/AFP/Getty Images
Agriculture in crisis
Maharashtra is one of India's most important agricultural states. In recent years, it has suffered disappointing rains and severe drought which led to crop failures. More than 2,500 farmers killed themselves in the state in 2017, according to official figures. But the problems are not limited to Maharashtra.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Swarup
Rising discontent
It has been a season of agrarian discontent in India and farmers across various states have regularly been holding demonstrations over the past several months pressing the government to offer them more help. The situation exposes the precarious state in which the country's struggling farmers and impoverished landless agricultural laborers find themselves in.
Image: AP
Poor earnings
Many farmers are struggling with high debts and poor earnings from lower produce prices. Experts say many farm commodities are trading below support prices set by the authorities, because the government only commits serious sums to buying wheat and rice, but not other crops.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo
A quick fix?
Analysts say loan waivers amount to quick fixes and they cannot tackle the structural flaws in farm policies, which have encouraged higher production of crops previously in short supply but offered scant protection on prices.
Image: Imago/Hindustan Times/R. Choudhary
A major challenge
The outburst of discontent poses a challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has promised to double farmers' incomes over the next five years. There is a risk that the protests could spread and intensify if no effective measures were put in place to resolve the issues.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Swarup
Dependent on agriculture
Two-thirds of India's population of 1.3 billion depends on farming for their livelihood, but agriculture makes up just around 14 percent of the nation's total economic output. Despite growing migration to cities in the past two decades, over half of the population still lives in rural areas.
