Former UN Under-Secretary General Shashi Tharoor has responded to accusations from activists in his native state of Kerala, India, regarding his membership of the Advisory Board of Yatn, the Coca-Cola India Foundation. In an open letter, the activists accused him of “insensitivity and unconcern to align with the criminal Coca-Cola against the people of Plachimada”.

The American soft-drink company had a bottling plant in Plachimada until 2004, when it was closed down after a successful campaign by activists, who claimed that it was responsible for a drastic decline in the quantity and quality of water available to local farmers and villagers.

Mr. Tharoor responded to the criticisms by saying that 'the Foundation is financed by the Coca-Cola Company as part of its corporate social responsibility' and that his membership of the Advisory Board aims at promoting 'a number of concrete projects, particularly in the area of safe drinking water'. He said he was satisfied that the allegations against Coca-Cola had been thoroughly examined and largely refuted by the authorities. Tharoor added that the company had continued to supply drinking water till December 2007, almost four years after the plant’s forced closure.

Web sites:

• Shashi Tharoor;
• Criticism of Coca-Cola (Wikipedia);
• Coca Cola’s operations in India

Related news: Innovation: Coca-Cola Foundation awards US$ 1 million for innovative water and sanitation solutions, Source South Asia, 23 Jan 2009

Source: Velur Swaminathan, An open letter to Sasitharur, 14 Feb 2009 and Shashi Tharoor, An Open Response to "an Open Letter to Shashi Tharoor", Huffington Post, 26 Feb 2009 - available on Business & Human Rights Resource Centre

Tags: south asia, water and livelihoods, water quality, water resources management