INTRODUCTION

During 1976-2000, the Plantation Corporation of Kerala flew some 65

sorties and aerially sprayed endosulfan, a persistent organic pollutant
(POP) over an area of about 12000 acres in nine villages in Kasargod
district. This was to eradicate tea mosquitoes in the cashew plantations.
The people living inside the plantations and downwind and downstream
of the experiment were exposed to this hazardous chemical for 25 years.
Studies conducted after the ban of the pesticide show significantly
higher concentration of endosulfan products in environmental media like
water, soil and lake sediments and human blood, even in a village 25 km
away from the sprayed area. The government of Kerala banned
Endosulfan in Kerala in 2001. The Central government has banned its
aerial spray. This POP is still being applied widely India and is also
available in Kerala.
The Exposure Pathways

All the environmental media studied have been contaminated with

endosulfan. The main routes of entry into the human body are:

1. From mothers body to foetus via placenta 36 weeks Placental

Exposure
2. From mothers milk to baby 36 months Maternal Milk-borne
exposure
3. From locally grown plant and animal foods egg, milk and meat
chronic, perennial Food borne exposure
4. From water Chronic and perennial Water borne Exposure
5. From air through breathing and through skin Few hours till the
vapour remains suspended in air. short duration. Aerial Exposure
Those who are exposed through the first three pathways, will also be
exposed to metabolites stress chemicals that are generated by the
living systems in response to the exposure. Cattles with congenital
anomalies and cancers are more likely to be sold for slaughter.
The exposed communities are :

1. Living inside the plantations about 300 families

2. Living very close to the plantation > 2000 families
3. Living downstream and downwind from the spray site not
estimated
4. Workers who were handling the pesticide and spraying equipments
about 300

Chronic exposure through water and food appears to be the major

pathway. The exposed people may be living very far away from the
scene of spray. NIOH study found endosulfan in soil samples of a
village, some 25 km away from the sprayed village. The mode of
transport in this case was few first order streams that originated from the
sprayed village.

NIOH Study

NIOH study was scientifically planned, designed, and carried out by a

team of experts, which included epidemiologists, physicians,
pediatricians, medical toxicologists, statisticians, analytical chemists,
and biochemists, who have years of experience in conducting such
studies and have many publications to their credit. The subjects of the
study were students of two schools one located in village Padre and the
other in village Meenja. Endosulfan was aerially sprayed over Padre and
not in Meenja. Environmental samples like soil, lake sediments and
drinking water were analyzed for the concentration of endosulfan
products. Blood samples of boys and girls were analyzed for endosulfan
products, chromosomal anomalies, and hormones related to growth,
thyroid and reproductive system. Paediatricians examined the willing
subjects for assessing the sexual maturity. The team also used satellite
images of the study area to assess the stream flows. This is a complete
study of a small sample of the exposed population. They submitted their
preliminary report in 2001 and final report in 2003 to the National
Human Rights Commission. Sayed Habibulla was the principal
investigator. A portion of the data from this report was published
in Environmental Health Perspective, a peer-reviewed published by the
US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

The NIOH study was based on a small sample, which is less than 2% of
the total exposed population. Dr Y Mohankumar, a physician with more
than two decades of practice in Padre village had published his shocking
finding of 171 patients with severe disabilities and cancer in 126
households. Details are given below:
 Mohankumar
Database

Households 126
People 756
(estimated)
Cancer 51
MR 38
Psy 49
Epilepsy 33
Total cases 171
Percent 22.6
Source : Y
Mohankumar

Health effects
Endosulfan is one of the most toxic pesticides on the market today,
responsible for many fatal pesticide poisoning incidents around the
world. Endosulfan is also a xenoestrogena synthetic substance that
imitates or enhances the effect of estrogensand it can act as
an endocrine disruptor, causing reproductive and developmental damage
in both animals and humans.

Toxicity

Endosulfan is acutely neurotoxic to both insects and mammals,

including humans. The US EPA classifies it as Category I: "Highly
Acutely Toxic" based on a LD50 value of 30 mg/kg for female rats, while
the World Health Organization classifies it as Class II "Moderately
Hazardous" based on a rat LD50 of 80 mg/kg. It is a GABA-gated
chloride channel antagonist, and a Ca2+, Mg2+ ATPase inhibitor. Both of
these enzymes are involved in the transfer of nerve impulses. Symptoms
of acute poisoning include hyperactivity, tremors, convulsions, lack of
coordination, staggering, difficulty breathing, nausea and vomiting,
diarrhea, and in severe cases, unconsciousness. Doses as low as
35 mg/kg have been documented to cause death in humans, and many
cases of sublethal poisoning have resulted in permanent brain
damage. Farm workers with chronic endosulfan exposure are at risk of
rashes and skin irritation
Endocrine disruption

Theo Colborn, an expert on endocrine disruption, lists endosulfan as a

known endocrine disruptor, and both the EPA and the Agency for Toxic
Substances and Disease Registry consider endosulfan to be a potential
endocrine disruptor. Numerous in vitro studies have documented its
potential to disrupt hormones and animal studies have demonstrated its
reproductive and developmental toxicity, especially among males.

Reproductive and developmental effects

Several studies have documented that endosulfan can also affect human
development. Researchers studying children from many villages
in Kasargod District, Kerala, India, have linked endosulfan exposure to
delays in sexual maturity among boys. Endosulfan was the only
pesticide applied to cashew plantations in the villages for 20 years, and
had contaminated the village environment. The researchers compared
the villagers to a control group of boys from a demographically similar
village that lacked a history of endosulfan pollution. Relative to the
control group, the exposed boys had high levels of endosulfan in their
bodies, lower levels of testosterone, and delays in reaching sexual
maturity. Birth defects of the male reproductive system,
including cryptorchidism, were also more prevalent in the study group.
The researchers concluded, "our study results suggest that endosulfan
exposure in male children may delay sexual maturity and interfere with
sex hormone synthesis. Increased incidences of cryptorchidism have
been observed in other studies of endosulfan exposed populations.

Endosulfan and cancer

Endosulfan is not listed as known, probable, or possible carcinogen by

the EPA, IARC, or other agencies. No epidemiological studies link
exposure to endosulfan specifically to cancer in humans, but in
vitro assays have shown that endosulfan can promote proliferation of
human breast cancer cells. Evidence of carcinogenicity in animals is
mixed.

In a 2016 study by the Department of Biochemistry, Indian Institute of

Science, Bangalore published in Carcinogenesis, Endosulfan was found
to induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) in a concentration and time-
dependent manner leading to double-stranded breaks in the DNA and
also found to favour subsequent erroneous DNA repair.

Actions taken by supreme court

The Supreme Court on Tuesday gave the Kerala government three
months to disburse Rs 500 crore as compensation for over 5,000 persons
who suffered from various deformities, health complications and lost
family members after using Endosulfan pesticides in the state.

A bench headed by Chief Justice JS Khehar also asked the state to

consider setting up a centre to provide lifelong medical treatment to all
the victims. It hoped the government would look into the feasibility of
making such a facility available.

The state government, the court said, was at liberty to take necessary
measure to recover compensation paid to victims from the Centre
through appropriate proceedings.

The directive came while the bench disposed off a public interest
petition filed by Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) in 2012,
which complained about the adverse effects of Endosulfan.

Both the Centre and Kerala were opposed to the ban of the pesticide due
to their effectiveness on pests, but the top court stopped its usage in
2012.

Earlier, a Supreme Court-appointed high-powered expert committee had

revealed that 13.35% of registered pesticides, including Endosulfan,
posed serious health hazards, especially to the reproductive system, and
could also lead to congenital deformities.
The panel had recommended the phasing out of the controversial
pesticide over a span of two years instead of destroying it through
incinerators, since the latter would have cost over Rs 1000 crore to the
exchequer. Senior experts, including the director general of health
services, member secretary of the Central Pollution of Control Board
and the director of the National Institute of Occupational Health were
members of the committee

Measures taken by government

Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan on Tuesday announced a

comprehensive package for relief and remediation of the victims of
endosulfan in the State.

The package includes higher pensions, special education, housing,

drinking water supply, rehabilitation, training and employment.
Debt relief to their families would be considered.

The Chief Minister made the announcement after a conference of

officials, peoples representatives and non-governmental
organisations convened by him to discuss the plight of the victims
and review the relief measures taken so far.

The Chief Minister told the media that the pensions for all patients,
who could not work, would be increased substantially. Debt relief
would also be favourably considered. The Cabinet would decide on
an immediate moratorium on recovery of loans and further
measures.

He said that the government had identified the next of kin of 486
persons, whose deaths had been caused by endosulfan, for payment
of a solatium of Rs. 50,000 each, and many had been paid. Payment
would now be made to the remaining persons.

Steps would be taken to improve the supply of protected drinking

water to the population. Water would be supplied in tankers where
safe drinking water was not available. Directions would be given for
decontamination of water sources.

Mr. Achuthanandan said that the Kasaragod Collector would prepare

a package for rehabilitation and for providing employment to the
victims. The youth would be given computer training and steps
would be taken to provide them with employment. Action would
also be taken to provide land for the landless and houses for the
homeless.

He disclosed that strong steps would be taken to prevent smuggling

of endosulfan into the State from other States under changed names.
Arrangements would also be made for an all party delegation from
the State to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to apprise him of
the situation in Kerala.
A monitoring cell would be set up in the State to oversee
programmes for relief and remediation of the victims. The
Endosufan Victims Relief and Remediation Cell would be
strengthened and brought under the Collector of Kasaragod. A
deputy collector would be appointed to coordinate the activities.

The Health Department would upgrade the hospitals in the district

and take steps to make expert care available to the victims.
Elaborate arrangements including vehicles would be set up for care
of the victims. Steps would be taken to provide rice at Rs. 2 a kg to
more patients. Special education would be provided to victims who
could not join the regular stream of education.

Replying to questions from the media, Mr. Achuthanandan admitted

that there were reports of endosufan affecting people of Idukki,
Wayanad and Palakkad districts. Water sources had been
contaminated by pesticides flowing down from tea and other estates.
This called for a comprehensive examination. As for the
establishment of tribunals for payment of compensation to the
victims, the feasibility would have to be examined, he said.