From July to November 2017, the cotton growing districts of Vidarbha, mainly Yavatmal, saw a sudden spike in people coming to hospitals complaining of nervousness, dizziness, visual impairment and stomach aches. All were cotton farmers or labourers who had been contact-poisoned while spraying insecticides in their fields. At least 50 died, over 1,000 became sick, some for months.
In this second story in a three-part series, PARI looks at what has happened in the region and what the Special Investigation Team constituted by the Maharashtra government found.
Thereafter, we will explore the bigger story of why Vidarbha consumes so much pesticide. And why Bt-cotton – a genetically modified variety that claimed in-built resistance to bollworm – seems to have cracked under the attack of the old pest. The pink bollworm is back with a vengeance – causing widespread devastation.






