Under pressure, officials in Western India move against abuse in sugar fields

The authorities in western India are taking steps to improve labour conditions for sugar cane cutters after a court ruling and an investigation by The New York Times and The Fuller Project highlighted serious abuses of workers.

Journalists revealed in 2024 that women in the Indian state of Maharashtra were pushed to get unnecessary hysterectomies as a way to keep them working in sweltering sugar fields, unencumbered by menstruation or gynaecological ailments. The sugar cane-cutting system also has used child labour, pushes young girls into marriage and locks families into debt bondage.

The sugar industry is overwhelmingly controlled by the state’s political leadership. And major Western brands like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have profited from the system. Government officials, regulators and companies have for years done little or nothing to address these abuses. Politicians say that changing the labour system would cut into sugar profits and make it impossible for factories to compete.

The Bombay High Court ruled in March that the government must address these problems. And though the court has no direct enforcement power in this case, labour-rights groups say the ruling is important because it is the first official acknowledgment that the system in Maharashtra must change.

The court ruled that migrant workers and the middleman contractors who hire them must be registered as a standard employee-employer relationship. That would close a loophole that has allowed sugar companies to deny any responsibility for the workers who cut their cane.

The court also called for the abolition of a system known as koyta, in which husband-and-wife teams cut sugar cane, with the men frequently receiving and controlling all the pay for each family unit.

If implemented, the changes could make sugar cane cutters eligible for a minimum wage, time off and other protections under Indian labour laws. Currently, the workers receive a loan at the beginning of each season, which they pay off through work. They have no days off and must pay a fee to leave work to see a doctor.

For women, seeking routine gynaecological care can mean falling deeper into debt to their contractors. Many postpone doctor’s visits or get hysterectomies as a drastic form of preventive care.

The court also said that workers should have access to clean drinking water, electricity, cooking gas and sanitation facilities.

Pepsi declined to comment, and Coca-Cola did not respond to a request for comment. NYTIMES