Plachimada:
A symbol of the struggle for water right |
 |
Plachimada
in Palkkad district of Kerala, India has been transformed from being
a nondescript hamlet in India, into a potent symbol of peoples’
struggle against the exploitation by a corporate behemoth.
The saga of resistance in Plachimada has forgrounded the issue of
the right over local resources, including water, are vested with
indigenous people, and not with governments or multinational
corporations.The social message of satyagraha, spearheaded by
Adivasis and Dalits with the support of political parties, which
began on April22, 2002.For the first time in its history the Cola
major had to close shop before the valiant spirit of an impoverished
people When
governments collude with corporates, democracy degenerates into a
system of brutal exploitation of the people. |
Political
will has to be exploited to ensure that the perpetrators of this corporate
plunder are made to pay compensation for the loss of livelihood, and
contaminated water and soil
|
|