November 2, 2009

Mehdiganj, Varanasi, India: This year, India is experiencing its worst drought in the last forty years.

Monsoon rains are the lifeline for India, and the rains failed to arrive in usual fashion this year. June 2009 was the driest June in the last eighty years in India.

Close to 70% of Indians make a living related to agriculture and the vast majority of farming in India is dependent on rainfall. Hundreds of millions of people in India continue to suffer from the impacts of drought as our crops fail and water sources dry up. more »

By Amit Srivastava
India Resource Center
 

San Francisco (September 24, 2009):  In 2007, facing growing opposition to its water management practices, particularly in India, Coca-Cola’s CEO, Neville Isdell came up with a brilliant idea.

The Coca-Cola company, he announced, will become water neutral, replenishing every drop of water they use, and therefore, as the suggestion went, Coca-Cola would have no impact of water resources around the world.

Voila! Problem solved, a company using 300 billion liters of water annually would have no impact on water resources. Sustainability doesn’t get any better than that.

The only problem was that Coca-Cola knew that water neutrality was impossible to achieve. more »

Coca-Cola Violating Fundamental Human Rights by Denying Access to Water

by India Resource Center
September 4, 2009

Kala Dera, Rajasthan, India:  Groundwater levels in Kala Dera, the site of Coca-Cola’s controversial bottling plant in India, have plummeted 5.83 meters (19 feet) in just one year between May 2007 and May 2008, according to government data obtained by the India Resource Center from the Central Groundwater Board.

Such a precipitous drop in a single year is unprecedented and has never been witnessed in Kala Dera.

The area of Kala Dera has also been declared a drought area by the government last week, adding to the water shortages in the area. more »

by Amit Srivastava
India Resource Center

 April 16, 2009:  Coca-Cola’s shareholder meeting is coming up next week and it just so happens that the meeting is perfectly timed to be on Earth Day – April 22.

Given our experience with Coca-Cola’s public relations which has the uncanny ability to make things up, it would not surprise us if the company uses the timing of Earth Day to bolster its green credentials.

For a company seeped in public relations – it spends in excess of $2.5 billion annually in marketing alone – the mantra seems to be that projecting a good image is more important than good practice. more »

March 23, 2009

Mr. Tharoor:

I read with amazement your letter defending your role as an advisor to the Coca-Cola India Foundation.

I was amazed because you have completely misstated the facts relating to the shutdown Coca-Cola bottling plant in Plachimada and the company’s bottling plants elsewhere in India.

As an advisor to the Coca-Cola India Foundation, along with your own proclaimed inquiry into the matter surrounding Coca-Cola’s operations in India, it is incumbent upon you to be aware of the facts of the matter and state them as such. more »

by Amit Srivastava
March 9, 2009

San Francisco: As the summer of 2009 approaches, the village of Kala Dera in north India is bracing itself for yet another season of acute water shortages – thanks largely to Coca-Cola.

As it is, accessing water is a daunting task for the villagers of Kala Dera. Kala Dera is located in the desert state of Rajasthan – one of the driest parts of India. Kala Dera has experienced eight years of drought in the last twenty five years! more »

Por Amit Srivastava
9 de Março, 2009

San Francisco: Enquanto o verão 2009 se aproxima, o vilarejo de Kala Dera, no norte da Índia, está se preparando para mais um período de grave escassez de água, e isso graças principalmente à Coca-Cola.

Nas condições atuais, o acesso à água é uma tarefa desanimadora para a população de Kala Dera. O vilarejo situa-se no deserto do Estado do Rajastão, uma das regiões mais secas da Índia. Nos últimos vinte e cinco anos, sua população já sofreu oito anos de seca! more »

Por Amit Srivastava
9 de Marzo, 2009

San Francisco: Conforme se acerca el verano de 2009, la villa de Kala Dera en el norte de India comienza a temer una nueva estación de carestía de agua – en gran medida gracias a Coca-Cola.

Ciertamente, el acceso al agua es una tarea retadora para los habitantes de Kala Dera, que está localizada en el desértico estado de Rajasthan – una de las partes más secas de India. ¡Kala Dera ha experimentado ocho años de sequía durante los últimos veinticinco años! more »