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Toxics Link believes that the availability, free flow

and the use of information enables us in the larger

environment. We also pursue our own campaigns

on issues we have expertise on, and simultaneously

work towards better alternatives which are not harm-

ful to the environment or to human health.

In the broader socio-economic context within which

we operate, there has been a change in the last 10

years in the Indian economy; with greater emphasis

on investments in the private sector, and on indus-

trialisation. This has naturally been accompanied by

a growth in GDP.

In this model of economic growth, the areas which

are most significantly impacted are those of envi-

ronmental and natural resources. And when re-

sources are diverted to one sector, in this case the

industrial sector, they are diverted away from some-

one else. This redistribution of natural resources

impacts the people who are living off them – both

in terms of being bereft of them and suffering the

impact of industrial pollution and industrial toxic-

ity. This raises concerns regarding not only human

health but also of agricultural productivity, both of

which are critical to civil society.

The environment then becomes a barrier to achiev-

ing high rates of growth in the industrial sector, and

policy begins looking at the environment in a criti-

cal manner. Over the last few years, there has been

a tendency to dilute environmental norms and en-

vironmental impacts to enable industrialisation. In

addition, there has been an inflow of global capital,

global entrepreneurship and global participation in

an industry which was largely protected but, over

the last few years, has been less and less so. With

global industry, first, comes a set of norms of pro-

duction, and those introduced here are not neces-

sarily the best in practice around the world. Secondly,

local industry feels threatened because along with

globalisation comes a regime of safety and environ-

mental standards which are much higher in devel-

oped countries than in developing countries.

It could also bring higher accountability to the whole

system, based on accountability standards that are

in place around the world, especially in industry.

However, the way that manifests is largely depend-

ent on local governance and local political institu-

tions, and on their power. High consumer aware-

ness in countries in Europe, for example, ensured

better corporate accountability and better implemen-

tation of environmental auditing norms. However,

those forces are not active in India and the relevant

constituents do not have the power – that is, con-

sumer awareness does not exert the same power in

India as it does in other parts of the world – then

these norms are not necessarily followed to the same

degree. There are several cases where one can see

such double standards in place.

Toxics Link as an organisation works with the belief thatproviding information at the right places, at the

community level, is the key to empowering decisionswhich are more democratic.

The space w i th in wh ich we f unc t i on

“In our attempt to affect socialprocesses, we need to engage withissues in a realistic manner. Werecognise that we influence and arein turn influenced by the forces –social, economic, political – thatmould the world”Ravi Agarwal, Executive Director

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There is now also increasing urbanisation, with the

earlier rural-urban divide beginning to close, and the

inter-relationshps becoming more visible. We see an

increasing linkage between the urban and the rural

in terms of the environment and economy as a

whole, and it brings a special emphasis on looking

at solutions as lying in the larger terrain and with

footprints which are located outside urban areas.

These large movements in the socio-economic, po-

litical and ecological scenarios result in many areas

of evolution and uncertainty in the environmental

sector and in the nature of its impacts. In such a

situation of flux, an organisation like Toxics Link

needs to focus its strengths to act as a driver of

environmental protection within the overall context.

To do so, we have identified three key roles: one is

information sharing and information transparency;

another is promoting better alternatives; and a third

is the campaign against specific toxics issues. Both

these involve a large amount of civil society net-

working and information exchange. Our focus is also

on helping empower networks to be able to take

more distributed action and on bringing ground re-

alities to the level of policy.

A primary constraint is that organisations like Toxics

Link are not always looked on favourably in the po-

litical arena, as they become a platform where other

voices are being enunciated, voices which are being

negatively impacted by the overall growth which has

been undertaken. As a result, over the last year, we

saw a tightening of norms and controls for organi-

sations like ours, in the way the media covered events

and in the way these issues are taken on board when

mainstream policies of health, industrial growth,

chemical sectors and other involved sectors are be-

ing formulated.

The going, therefore, is not necessarily smooth.

Even though networking and information flow are

critical democratic functions to Toxics Link’s work-

ing, they can become threats to other stakeholders

in the process.

The challenge is two-fold: one, to be able to do the

job well; and secondly, to be able do the job at all –

both of which, in this case, imply taking the right

kind of information to those who want it. Another

challenge is to propagate that information in an

honest and truthful manner, which itself becomes

a threat to other stakeholders. Toxics Link and simi-

lar organisations, therefore, have to undergo quite a

few barriers to their operation, and need to legiti-

mise their own existence on an ongoing basis.

There have been enabling factors too. Over the last several yearsof work, Toxics Link has been able to get a fairly credible placeamongst other actors.That credibility has been one of the main enabling

factors for it to be able to say what it has to say and

to do what it has to do. What Toxics Link says and

does is taken seriously by other stakeholders. Other

enabling factors are a shrinking information soci-

ety; larger numbers of people accessing informa-

tion; more empowering right-to-information laws;

greater judicial activism – all of which help put these

issues on the table. Greater awareness, especially

among the middle class, a growing voice of the poor

through various networks, about issues concerning

health, food, survival itself, helps create a constitu-

ency of recipients for information dissemination.

Toxics Link needs to constantly build on these ena-

bling factors; it needs to build on its ability to ad-

dress issues in various parts of the country. It needs

to develop its information dissemination vehicles

and products to ensure better and further circula-

tion of knowledge. It also needs to keep building

up good research, reflecting ground realities, that

adds to the organisation’s credibility. Together with

improving knowledge circulation, this is an ongo-

ing process. A positive stance in all these areas with

perseverance as well as with high and credible qual-

ity is an ongoing effort at Toxics Link.

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The most significant developments during the

course of the year were the organisational restruc-

turing exercises that were undertaken. Recognition

of Toxics Link’s track record over the years had led

to a natural process of growth, which for some time

had been throwing up its own challenges. A mix-

ture of forethought and serendipity led to associa-

tions with the right people, which enabled Toxics

Link in the course of the year to make the struc-

tural adjustments necessary to cope with the ex-

panded operational scenario.

The Advisory Body was re-constituted, bringing in

professionals in diverse but related fields, and with

an eye on gender equality. The new Body met on a

quarterly basis, with members engaging actively with

the strategic and operational issues facing the or-

ganisation, and setting broad directions.

The process of operational restructuring began with

a precise articulation of programmes and their goals.

The four programme teams, as well as the informa-

tion and communication unit, undertook planning

exercises, in collaboration with external consultants,

to arrive at their programme definitions and goals.

All operational planning was then based using these

as the lodestones.

Detailed road maps and role definitions were arrived

at for all programme teams, as well as for support

functions, and gaps in human resources identified.

The next logical step was to fill those gaps – the

result has been the assimilation into the Toxics Link

team of skilled people in some key roles.

Most important organisationally has been the in-

duction of a Chief Programmes Coordinator. Satish

Sinha, who was taken on in this role after a strin-

gent recruitment process, has taken the operational

aspects of Toxics Link in hand, leaving the Execu-

tive Director able to do the envisioning and direc-

tion-setting that is central to the organisation’s suc-

cess in the long term.

Programme teams too have been strengthened wher-

ever they needed to be. Other important additions

to the organisation have included people in accounts

and in administration.

The nodes, too, integral as they are to the distribu-

tion of organisational impact on a wider scale, have

seen strengthening through greater integration with

organisational plans, and through the induction of

people where needed.

Following all these inclusions, the Toxics Link

organogram (seen on the facing page) has begun to look

well-set for expanded horizons and impacts. The

objective has never been to build the organisation

for its own sake, but only as a process in the imple-

mentation of a multiplicity of engagements at vari-

ous levels.

An organisation is much like a living thing. It shiftsshape over time – its face, its body transformingcontinuously. The challenge is to channelise this

development in directions one had set out to take.

The o rgan i s a t ion a s o rgan i sm – g row ing , e vo l v i ng

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One other focus throughout the year was the em-

phasis on working in a planned manner towards

goals. Capacity-building exercises were undertaken

with the aim of bringing in a result orientation and

a higher sense of accountability for one’s commit-

ments among all programme team members. Team

coordinators were given special orientation towards

leadership roles. A system of quarterly reviews of

work goals and accomplishemnts was put in place,

and played an important role in shaping the atti-

tudes of teams towards a goals-based approach.

An in-house planning workshop in progress.

Advisory BodyBoard of Trustees

Executive Director

Administration and Accounts

Head of Programmes

Regional NodesChennai

Mumbai Programme Teams

Toxics Free Health CareCommunities and Waste

Information andCommunication

Clean IndustryChemicals and Health

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Toxics Free Health Care

Objectives of the programme team: Working to-

wards making healthcare delivery hazards-free by

replacing toxic products, processes and technolo-

gies by clean and safer alternatives.

Team: Anu Agarwal, Ratna Singh and Priti Mahesh.

• Push for closure

of onsite incinerators

Relentless and continuous pressure on the govern-

ment to stop the use of incinerators finally led to

the acceptance that onsite incineration is not desir-

able. In the recent guidelines of the Central Pollu-

tion Control Board (CPCB), the government has

banned any new installation of onsite incinerators

and mentions that only under very special cases

would approval be given for these. This is only part

of the shift aimed at – Toxics Link advocates for

zero incineration as the ultimate goal.

A report, Incinerators in Delhi: State the biggest polluter,

was released to highlight the closure of incinerators

in all private hospitals against their continued use in

the government sector. The resulting media cover-

age led to suo moto cognisance being taken by the

High Court, which issued a notice to the Delhi gov-

ernment to explain its stance. The team will now

campaign for zero incineration, and stringent moni-

toring for stricter enforcement of centralised facil-

ity guidelines.

Achievements: Ban on onsite incinerators and

stricter norms for new incinerators in the country,

making them unfavourable options.

• Lobby for replacement

of mercury products

A report, compiled to highlight the harmful effects

of mercury, focussed on the usage of mercury in

hospitals. It covered its hazards and awareness of

disposal methods amongst the staff, particularly the

nurses. The report also covers government policies

and international trends. Similar information was

generated for dental clinics to address the issue of

use of dental amalgam. The aim now is to initiate

policy level work so that mercury products in the

healthcare sector are phased out.

Achievement: Adoption of mercury collection pro-

grammes by select hospitals.

• Make immunisation campaigns

accountable for waste management

The documentation of Himalayan Institute Hospi-

tal Trust (HIHT) highlighted it as a model healthcare

institution which has been managing its immunisa-

tion waste through non-burn treatment options over

a period of some years. This documentation was

strategically very timely, as some major players in

the immunisation programme of the country, such

as UNICEF, WHO, etc, have been suggesting op-

tions like open burning in safety boxes and treat-

ment through small-scale incinerators, as the only

viable options.

This documentation also came in the wake of re-

ports that the government was considering opting

for auto-disabled (AD) syringes in immunisation

programmes. This would not only increase the

amount of waste generated immensely and also

would lead to a very important question: what will

happen to all the plastic waste which will be gener-

ated at scattered rural and district health centres as

a consequence of this?

Toxics Link runs campaigns in four programme areas –Toxics Free Health Care, Communities and Waste, Clean

Industry, and Chemicals and Health. The Information andCommunication Unit acts as a hub for the organisation.

The f r u i t s o f ou r p rog rammat i c e f fo r t s

The information kit on mercury forhospital staff and dentists.

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The above issue was covered substantially in the

media; HIHT was talked of as a model institution.

The key players noticed the sustainable immunisa-

tion waste practice and visits were made to the hos-

pital to understand the system. The goal is now to

use this model to fight promotion of small-scale

incineration.

Achievements: Documentation of HIHT case

study; presentation of the study at the SIGN (Safe

Injection Global Network) annual meet; shift in

WHO and UNICEF thinking on burning of plastic

syringes in India.

• Collaborative capacity-building

with CAG – Citizen consumer and

civic Action Group

After conducting joint surveys on managing bio-

medical waste in 2000, 2001 and 2002, Toxics Link

Chennai and CAG have been successful in imple-

menting changes at the level of individual healthcare

institutions. Both the groups have also been engag-

ing successfully at a policy level through their ap-

pointment to the State-level Advisory Committee.

Going a step further, CAG and Toxics Link Chennai

facilitated capacity-building for all stakeholders by

inviting international experts from the Health Care

Without Harm (HCWH) network. Specialised train-

ing was also carried out for select institutions such

as blood banks and laboratories.

The most significant feature of 2003 was the change

in approach in the strategy for better medical waste

management to the bottom-up approach. By targett-

ing communities with credible information, CAG

and Toxics Link Chennai have alerted them to pol-

luting healthcare institutions, so that the neighbour-

hood’s residents themselves can take action to curb

haphazard disposal. Another significant feature is

the groups’ integral participation in the drafting of

the state-level implementation policy.

• Other projects

� A costing tool has been developed in associa-

tion with the Programme for Appropriate Tech-

nology and Health (PATH) which would facili-

tate countries’ decision-making with regard to

implementing one or more options for injection

waste management. The tool considers seven op-

tions for waste disposal and lists the fixed, vari-

able and hidden costs involved in each method,

to help users find a solution.

� A training manual, which would act as a tool for

trainers and managers in various hospitals and

other institutions to train their staff on hospital

waste management, has been developed and will

soon be released.

� The Health and Us – Medwaste Action Network

(HuMAN) met in Delhi, where the mission state-

ment and workgroups were restructured. The

group is now looking into expanding its network

to reach the remotest healthcare facilities. In ad-

dition, literature and information dissemination

as well as advocacy were the focus areas for this

year.

� This year the focus, as far as communication

material is concerned, was on rural waste and

immunisation. The first factsheet was on rural

waste, the second on centralised facilities, the

third on the low-cost technology prototypes

which were awarded in the HCWH Contest on

Low Cost Technologies, and the last on

needlestick injuries.

“A WHO representative spent15 days here reviewingsuccessful non-burn practicesof disposal of immunisationwaste, such as at HIHT.Following India’s model, theWHO is looking at shiftingfrom burn to non-burn options.Ratna Singh, Toxics Free Health Care

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Communities and Waste

Objectives of the programme: To work for pro-

viding sustainable solutions on municipal solid waste

by creating stakeholders’ responsibility for the ben-

efit of the poor.

Team: Sanjay K. Gupta, Tanya Sengupta, Indrajeet

Rai, Akanksha Mishra and Kishan Choudhary.

• Research and documentation

A major project commenced by the Communities

and Waste team aims to document 25 successful

waste management projects across the country, with

the purpose of devising strategies to upscale these.

Till March 2004, 14 projects had been documented.

The documentation has been done on the basis of

certain preset variables, in order to minimise dis-

crepancies. The methodology followed has included

administering a questionnaire to four different

stakeholders (service recipients, service providers,

municipality and waste collectors), physical obser-

vation and also documenting the perceptions of

people who are not part of the initiative.

At this interim juncture, the research has found dif-

ferent models working in different parts of the coun-

try. While some advances have been achieved

through intervention by NGOs, others have been

through the initiative of municipalities or through

joint efforts.

A team of experts was constituted as the Advisory

Committee to guide the team on different compo-

nents of the project, both for the research and docu-

mentation as well as for grassroots intervention.

• Implementation

The implementation element of the programme was

planned through a grassroots intervention in Delhi.

Sarita Vihar, a middle-income colony, was selected

after an area survey done in two other residential

enclaves in South Delhi. Sarita Vihar has approxi-

mately 6,000 households and 11 registered Residents’

Welfare Associations (RWAs), out of which we are

working with three RWAs with 1,000 households.

Initial rapport-building with the residents was es-

tablished through frequent group and individual

meetings.

A baseline survey was conducted to understand the

disposal pattern in these residential pockets and to

gauge the awareness levels of the community. Gov-

ernment officials from various departments were

contacted to understand their involvement in the

process of solid waste management (SWM). Dif-

ferent types of Information, Education and Com-

munication (IEC) materials were developed with the

help of the residents to distribute in the colony to

spread awareness on zero waste management. In the

period under review, 20 training workshops and 29

formal meetings were conducted with different

groups, apart from daily interaction with the site-

level municipal staff and resident volunteers.

“Our research project hasreally opened our eyes.There are so many waysthat committed people –in NGOs, in government,in communities – aremaking a difference”Sanjay K. Gupta,

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The project has been successful in forming a plat-

form, consisting of resident volunteers from dif-

ferent pockets, associations and municipal staff, to

devise solutions to sanitation-related problems in

the area. As a result, residents and municipal staff

have, for the first time, had the opportunity to ad-

dress sanitation-related issues jointly and to moni-

tor the progress of their efforts. The high attend-

ance of key role players in monthly coordination

committee meetings is an indicator of the success

of this platform.

• Collaborative Regional Alliance

As part of the Ford Project, Toxics Link helped cata-

lyse the formation of Alliance for Waste Manage-

ment (AWM) is a platform which brings together

various organisations and experts working in the

field of waste management in different parts of the

country as well as in other South Asian countries.

Together they form a formidable advocacy

group,which intends to push municipalities to adopt

sustainable waste management practices.It also runs

a e-list called awm@yahoogroups.co.in

The AWM, which includes Ashoka Fellows from

India, Nepal and Bangladesh, has created a National

Working Committee which will act as a Policy Ad-

vocacy and Lobby Group in different states. The

network is in the process of creating a region-wise

human resource bank of expertise to assist com-

munities and municipalities in SWM practices.

• Training workshop

A Regional Skillshare Workshop for ‘Upscaling Peo-

ple’s Participation in Community Waste Management

Systems’ was organised in Delhi from August 26-

29, 2003. The main objective of the workshop was

to build the capacity of NGOs, other organisations,

municipalities and individuals in developing and

adopting sustainable waste management practices.

Experts from different parts of the country were

invited to train and to share their experiences. In-

teractive sessions were interspersed with field ex-

posures. A highlight of the workshop was the pres-

ence of two judges from the Appellate Court of Sri

Lanka, who have since taken SWM issues forward

in their country through legislative and judicial in-

terventions.

• IEC materials

Meetings and discussions within the team and with

communication specialists were held to develop ap-

propriate IEC material for communities on SWM-

related issues. The inputs of RWAs helped gauge

the nature of materials which would work. In the

period under review, the materials produced included

a calendar on waste segregation, a flier on Zero

Waste, and two flip charts on community mobilisa-

tion and methods of composting.

The IEC material prepared by theCommunities and Waste team for theSarita Vihar implementation project.

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Clean Industry

Objectives of the programme team: Working for

the replacement of toxic technologies, industries and

products with cleaner alternatives for safer environ-

mental health.

Team: Gopal Krishna and Kishore Wankhade.

• Electronic waste (e-waste)

Toxics Link released its report Scrapping the hi-tech

myth: Computer waste in India, in February 2003. The

report was the first to raise the important issue of

e-waste in India, which is fast becoming a new trend

of waste and has hitherto always been overlooked.

The report highlighted the hazardous recycling of

e-waste carried out in Delhi and the perils of com-

puter waste being dumped in India illegally by de-

veloped countries.

As part of Toxics Link’s national strategy for e-waste

management, an investigation was intiated in

Chennai in September 2003. Within six months, a

landmark report titled E-waste in Chennai: Time is run-

ning out was released, documenting the status in this

region. The report was widely covered in the print

and visual media, which resulted in meetings with

the Chairperson of the State Pollution Control

Board and the Chairman of the Supreme Court

Monitoring Committee on Hazardous Waste.

In collaboration with the CPCB and German Tech-

nical Cooperation (GTZ), Toxics Link organised a

one-day ‘National Workshop on Electronic Waste

Management’ on March 15, 2004. The objective was

to bring together representatives of electronics and

computer industries, policy-makers, international

experts, recyclers, NGOs and the media to discuss

e-waste issues, and to work out policies and inter-

ventions for better e-waste management practices

in India. Through the sharing of knowledge and in-

teraction, the workshop generated new ideas and

strategies for practical and safe solutions towards

managing the increasing quantum of e-waste in In-

dia. The plans included intensifying the campaign

against e-waste, banning imports and pushing for

organised recycling of e-waste.

In addition, based on Toxics Link’s reports, ques-

tions were raised in Parliament by several legisla-

tors. The CPCB has initiated a meeting with State

Pollution Control Boards and other major stake-

holders, along with the industry and Toxics Link.

Achievement: Raised the issue of electronic waste

as a cause of major concern for the near future.

• Mercury

In September 2003, Toxics Link released its national

assessment of mercury in the form of a report en-

titled Mercury in India: Toxic pathways. The report pre-

sented the status of mercury in India, highlighting

the usage and trade, the environmental and health

hazards, and the standards and legislation related to

it. The report is meant to move the government and

industry into action, for them to realise the danger-

ous potential of mercury as a pollutant and health

hazard, which is ignored in India. While the world

is phasing out mercury usage, India is still consum-

ing it in various sectors. The chlor-alkali sector and

thermal power plants are the main culprits, emitting

80% of India’s releases. An international workshop

on mercury is planned for early 2005, to kick off

the campaign against mercury.

“Electronic waste isbrought into the countryunder various guises, andofficial estimates of themagnitude of theproblem are purely tip-of-the-iceberg guesses”K.S. Sudhakar,

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Achievement: The Toxics Link report resulted in

significant media coverage to the issue of mercury.

• Combatting the

waste-to-energy bogey

With Energy Developments Limited’s Solid Waste

Energy Recycling proposal at Perungudi, South

Chennai, still hanging fire thanks to Toxics Link

Chennai’s earlier interventions, the controversial

gasification technology project remains in limbo.

The proposed Gazipur Waste-to-Energy Plant in

Delhi was shelved following Toxics Link’s interven-

tion. The State Pollution Control Boards of Tamil

Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Kerala and

Maharashtra have taken a stance against the use of

incinerator technologies for electricity based on our

briefings. The CPCB is also taking cognisance of

this viewpoint.

Articles written by Toxics Link team members on

waste-to-energy issues appeared in Sahara Time and

The Ecologist Asia, resulting in additional visibility for

the issue.

Chemicals and Health

Objectives of the programme team: To create

knowledge regarding Persistent Organic Pollutants

(POPs) and pesticides; to collaboratively raise aware-

ness for reducing usage and shifting towards safer

alternatives; and to engage in the process of the

Stockholm Convention as a part of the National

Implementation Process.

Team: Papiya Sarkar and Kishore Wankhade.

• POPs information kit assembled

Toxics Link prepared a comprehensive information

kit on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). The

kit, which contains detailed information about POPs,

comprises a booklet, factsheet and poster in a docket

(for ease of distribution).

Achievements: The POPs information kit was dis-

tributed to selected policy-makers as well as to

around 550 members and groups working or inter-

ested in toxic issues. It has also resulted in a certain

amount of coverage for the issue in the media.

“Following our campaignefforts, the Commerce andIndustry Ministry brandedincinerator technologies aspolluting and opposed theirinclusion in the WTO list ofenvironmental goods andservices.”Gopal Krishna, Clean Industry

“The important thing is toget the government to ratifythe Stockholm Convention.That’s what efforts such asthe POPs information kit areeventually targetted at.There is a lot of resistance,on many fronts.”Papiya Sarkar,

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• WHO study on pesticides in

tobacco cultivation under way

The current study, ‘Situation analysis on the poten-

tial health impacts of pesticide use in tobacco pro-

duction in selected SEAR countries: An overview’,

examines the potential health impacts of pesticide

use in tobacco production in some SEAR countries.

• Food safety

On April 22, 2003, the Supreme Court admitted a

civil writ petition filed by Srishti. The petition brings

to the fore trends and statistics emerging over the

past two decades showing increasing contamination

of everyday food items, and draws mainly from the

government’s own studies. The food includes farm

gate vegetables, milk, grains, water, etc. Much of

the contamination is through chemicals like pesti-

cides and insecticides. Currently there is no recourse

for consumers of such food to protect themselves

from such contamination.

Earlier, Toxics Link, along with Imperial College

London, the Indian Agricultural Reesearch Institute

(IARI) and IT-BHU, Varanasi, had released a report

showing widespread and high levels of contamina-

tion of vegetables with heavy metals. The report

drew considerable attention and led to several ques-

tions being raised in Parliament about the issue.

Based on the report, the Ministry of Environment

and Forests has convened a group to carry out a

national-level evaluation of vegetable contamination

in the country.

The petition seeks a ban on the pesticides and in-

secticides, in use in India, which have already been

banned in the other countries. The Supreme Court

issued notices to five Central Government minis-

tries on a public interest petition seeking stricter

regulation on the use of pesticides.

Against the backdrop of the case in the Supreme

Court, Toxics Link brought together civil society

groups and representatives of organic farmers from

across the country, on August 23, 2003, in New

Delhi, to work and campaign for food safety. The

participants agreed to work as a Food Safety Net-

work in different parts of the country to campaign

for food chain integrity. The network is working on

a Civil Society Resolution for the Right to Safe Food

and on a massive nationwide campaign demanding

this Right.

The activists made a strong case for chemical-free

farming and sought incentives for farmers who stop

using pesticides. The domestic market of organic

food, which has not been exposed to chemical farm-

ing, is also growing. But the government’s emphasis

on non-toxic organic food for export and toxic

chemical exposed food for domestic consumption

smacks of double standards. Extensive research

work on pesticides and organic farming is under way.

Achievement: A start has been made on bringing

the Right to Safe Food to the people.

“Our research on food safetyshowed up some frighteningfacts about the ingredientsthat we eat. And I amtalking about basic fooditems, that no one – fromthe poorest to the rich – cando without.”Kishore Wankhade, Clean Industry

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• Cleaning up toxic sites

Toxics Link has, in close coordination with local

agencies, helped identify some toxic sites within In-

dia, and is facilitating the work of the local agencies

in remediating these polluted sites. Till date, three

sites – Kanpur, Shillong and Daurala (Meerut) – have

been identified for action.

• No PVC for Cuddalore

Chemplast, a Chennai-based plastics major, pro-

posed to set up a PVC facility at SIPCOT industrial

estate in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. The communities

living in villages in and around SIPCOT have been

threatened with loss of resources and livelihood and

the imminent danger of health problems with on-

going pollution. Further, as it has been proven that

PVC facilities generate dioxins, setting up one would

undermine India’s commitment under the Stock-

holm Convention for eliminating POPs.

Once its implications were made clear, the setting

up of the PVC facility drew heavy flak from the

communities. Toxics Link teamed up with national

and local NGOs to assist the communities in op-

posing the plant that would be a serious threat to

the local people and the environment.

Through interventions at a public hearing, by re-

questing the Indian Peoples’ Tribunal to study the

human rights and environment violations in the re-

gion and by repeated lobbying with the project

financer IFC – the network comprising NGOs and

community representatives not only got IFC to with-

draw the proposed funding but also had the plant

shifted out of Cuddalore.

Toxics Link Chennai is now assisting the groups at

the new site in Andhra Pradesh through critical in-

formation sharing.

• Closing down

a pharmaceutical unit

One of the direct interventions last year was a site

assessment carried out by Toxics Link Chennai on

the basis of complaints against a pharmaceutical unit

operating in a residential locality. The site assess-

ment was taken note of by the TNPCB and the plant

was issued a closure notice.

Achievement: The community was mobilised to act

and prevent setting up of the potentially harmful

facilities in their backyard.

• Battling the white asbestos

menace

A pitched battle continues to be fought with the

asbestos industry, as India continues to import and

use the killer fibre. Much of the campaigning re-

volved around countering the misinformation cam-

paign of the industry through various means – pro-

grammes on All India Radio, articles in newspapers

and magazines, and interviews with the print and

electronic media.

At policy levels, campaigners appraised state and dis-

trict administrators, legislators and national media

about the hazards from asbestos, and made a pres-

entation at the Ottawa Conference on ‘Canadian as-

bestos: A global concern’, persuading a Canadian

Member of Parliament to write to the President of

India seeking a ban on asbestos import from Canada.

Subsequently, several asbestos-related questions

were raised in Parliament, and the Labour Ministry

and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs recognised

the Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI) as an

important stakeholder in the issue. Toxics Link is

the convenor of BANI.

“The battle againstthe asbestosindustry has ragedfor a while now, andwill continue to bepart of our focus inthe future as well.Engagement toensure WTO’s ban onwhite asbestoscontinues.”Gopal Krishna,

Clean Industry

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Information andCommunication Unit

Objectives of the team: To create and share glo-

bal knowledge on toxics within and across the com-

munities of practice and among various stakeholders

to help strengthen the campaign against toxics.

Team: Ruchita Khurana, Shobana Devi and Praveen

Sharma.

• Development of a

communications strategy

Toxics Link’s communications efforts have taken

some major steps forward in the past year. The most

important of them was the development of a long-

term communications strategy based on the com-

munications audit conducted the year before. The

strategy, developed with the help of consultants,

outlines how Toxics Link could take its communi-

cations profile to a new plane. It encompasses sev-

eral elements, including a media strategy, internal

communications, information management and a

knowledge products initiative. The lattermost is

likely to have the most significant effect on the or-

ganisation in the future.

Work has already begun on the implementation of

the strategy. The most immediately visible aspect

was the development of a new idenity for the or-

ganisation, and the establishment of guidelines for

its implementation. This new identity has already

begun shaping a highly recognisable face for Toxics

Link communications.

A communications planning workshop also helped

all programme teams to start thinking about their

communications in a structured and result-oriented

manner, resulting in more focussed communications

products. A communications briefing form has be-

gun to be used to define the objectives of commu-

nications materials, and to mould the materials to

fulfill the identified purposes.

Achievements: The establishment of a comprehen-

sive communications strategy and a coherent and

memorable visual identity for Toxics Link, and the

development of focussed communications materi-

als.

• Publications for

information dissemination

Quarterly newsletters, providing updated informa-

tion on the programme areas of Toxics Link, are

mailed to more than 1,200 members working on one

or more similar issues. Factsheets, which carry a

detailed description of any single issue, are also pub-

lished regularly. Four issues of Toxics Dispatch have

been published in the last year: in July 2003, Octo-

ber 2003, December 2003 and March 2004.

Factsheets have been brought out on POPs, mer-

cury and e-waste.

Achievements: Response has been positive; mem-

bers have started sending write-ups on their areas

of work. As some of Toxics Link’s member groups

are working at community and grassroots level, the

publications give a large readership the opportunity

to learn about what is happening in other regions.

• Information management

and dissemination

Toxics Information Resource Centre

The Resource Centre’s collection of books, docu-

ments, journals, magazines, audio-visual materials,

Parliament questions and news clippings has been

automated using the software ‘NETTLIB’. Current

awareness bulletins, which provide up-to-date infor-

mation on the latest available titles in the library, are

circulated over LAN to in-house users.

“The work focus hasexpanded from information

collation and distributionto communications. It has

been a challenging year,but constant learning and

capacity building is helpingopen new doors.”

Ruchita Khurana, Information

and Communications Unit

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Activities undertaken include:

� Accessioning and cataloguing existing resources.

� Creating daily information bulletins from news

clippings, books and documents and articles from

periodicals/journals.

� Updating and automating the database of Par-

liament questions.

� Implementing a multiple keyword search option

for the entire library database.

Toxics Digest

� Compiled scientific studies.

� Prepared abstracts with a view to bringing out

the first draft of the Digest.

Information posting

� Posted content to global networks and portals.

Queries

� Received and responded to more than 300 que-

ries from April 2003 to March 2004 (40% of

these were from the media).

Website

� Reached the alpha stage of the redesigned Toxics

Link website.

Achievements: Wider coverage has eased global

sharing of knowledge on toxics-related issues. Que-

ries are being received from the portals to which

regular information is posted.

• Outreach travel

With grassroots inputs being perceived as funda-

mental to the information clearing function of

Toxics Link, we have begun outreach trips by our

communications team members to get feedback on

information requirements from grassroots organi-

sations and groups working in remote locations. The

first such trips were undertaken to two states, cov-

ering 10 destinations. The states and cities covered

were Tamil Nadu (Chennai, Pondicherry, Cuddalore

and Auroville) and Orissa (Bhubaneswar, Angul-

Talcher, Dhenkanal, Puri, Rayagada and Behrampur).

Achievement: As many as 45 new members, who

subscribe to Toxics Link’s mission statement, joined

the fold.

• Environment and Health

Public Lecture series

The Environment and Health Public Lectures were

organised, in collaboration with India International

Centre, on a monthly basis to raise general aware-

ness and foster informed debate on environmental

issues. There were panel discussions, lectures and

screening of documentary films. The guest speak-

ers included other NGO groups, journalists, bureau-

crats, politicians, medical professionals, lawyers and

concerned citizens.

Toxics Link has conducted nine monthly public lec-

tures (24 public lectures have been organised since

September 2001) on subjects as varied as children

and environmental health; water contamination;

computer scrap; waste management; the right to safe

food; Bhopal; and livelihood and conservation.

Achievements: Coordinated with publishers on

public lecture series publication. Key publishers have

shown keenness in publishing these lectures. An

informal tie-up with Orient Longman has been es-

tablished.

• Film festival on the environment

Toxics Link organised a festival of films on the en-

vironment called ‘Quotes from the Earth’ from Janu-

ary 22-24, 2004, in collaboration with the India In-

ternational Centre in New Delhi. The festival, which

revolved around the themes of Water, Hunger and

Survival, was a great success. The films shown have

now been packaged for availability to anyone inter-

ested in hosting a festival of their own.

Achievements: The festival has seen significant

response and publicity, and the package of films has

been requested by several organisations.

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On the ground Toxics Links works with specific

constituencies, in hospitals, in the community and

among other groups and networks. The attempt has

been, over the years, to go to the most disempowered

groups, for example, workers, class IV employees

in hospitals, because they are viewed as agents of

change. There has been a constant attempt to focus

on constituents who are the actual people being

impacted.

Toxics Link is also working along with trade unions

on issues of industrial pollution, since it must ad-

dress a larger constituency of work, and not posi-

tion environmental work in a way that affects and

harms the workers. This has been a growing per-

spective over the years and is a departure from look-

ing at the environment in a very separate way, in a

way which harms the lives of people who are di-

rectly connected to, say, industry. It comes from a

belief that there is a basic root cause of both labour

exploitation and environmental exploitation. In a

country like India, where livelihoods are a critical

issue, to position environment only as a concern of

the rich is against the principles of Toxics Link and

of environmental equity and justice per se.

Toxics Link has been in close touch with, for in-

stance, trade unions in the issue of asbestos; it has

encouraged them to take this issue up as a safety

concern since they are the largest stakeholders in

being health-impacted. Classically and traditionally,

this has not been the approach of trade unions; they

normally only look at trade negotiations but of late

have started taking occupational safety as an impor-

tant input into their work. Toxics Link has also been

working with networks such as the Ban Asbestos

Network of India, or BANI, on drafting an occupa-

tional safety bill along with the trade unions, and is

trying to grow a larger constituency interfacing oc-

cupational safety and the environment.

All the campaigns Toxics Link conducts have net-

works around them; it is the organisation’s constant

effort both to keep these networks vitalised as well

as to ensure that they participate in the campaigns

as a joint front. Toxics Link also participates in part-

ner groups activities wherever it is asked to do so.

Over the last one-and-a-half years it has become a

more stable organisation, and provides assistance

wherever necessary – be it in the form of platforms,

or sometimes resources if it can afford to do so.

Toxics Link does this to the best of its ability and

resources, and the attempt is to increase that possi-

bility. It is currently close to undertaking a small

grants programme under which it will try and pro-

vide financial resources to some of the other groups

which are involved in critical work but may not the

have the resources.

Programmes are taken forward because every mem-

ber sees it as part of a group effort. So there are

several common programmatic networks or issue-

based networks which are now in place. For instance,

the Alliance for Waste Management set up by Toxics

Link has over 100 members now all over the coun-

try; Health and Us – Medwaste Action Network

(HuMAN) has about 40 members; the Ban Asbes-

tos Network of India (BANI), has 30 members.

Toxics Link is trying to developstrategic alliances with publicinterest bodies and other actors.The Toxics Link nodes in Mumbai and Chennai are

run by other partners, or other NGOs (India Cen-

tre for Human Rights and Law, and CAG – Citizen

consumer and civic Action Group, respectively) and

these are very close strategic alliances. These are al-

most operational alliances, where we share

workplans and processes at a very intimate level, and

the coordinators of these alliances are a part of the

Toxics Link Advisory Board as well. Toxics Link is

trying to develop closer strategic alliances with part-

ners in other parts of India, whom it has been work-

ing with for a long time.

Toxics Link shares its information with a number ofgrassroots groups, institutions and organisations – bothnational and international – and networks, working with

what is effectively thousands of people.

Work ing w i th in ne two r k s fo r g rea t e s t r e a ch

“We have tomeasure our successin terms of ourability to functioneffectively as a partof various types ofnetworks”Satish Sinha,

Head of Programmes

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As Toxics Link deepens its possibilities and organi-

sational capabilities, it also becomes capable of hav-

ing more intimate and deeper strategic alliances with

fewer but important groups as ways of sharing the

networks’ capabilities nationally. We share informa-

tion closely with several groups who work on toxics

around the country on issue-based alliances. They

may not be as intimate as the other alliances but are

very close in any case. With other players, Toxics

Link has, over time, developed alliances where it has

a position on the table, as in the case of toxics

stakeholders. Toxics Link has been invited to share

in the conversations on toxics, on the policy table,

and also with non-governmental but institutional

actors where it has had to influence policy or even

organisations – since they are very large players in

the scenario – such as the WHO, the World Bank

and UNDP, who play a very critical role in the envi-

ronment scenario in India. Toxics Link has been able

to forge credible, independent negotiation places

with them; it does not have to necessarily agree with

what they are saying but it is certainly able to con-

vey another viewpoint.

The organisation lays great emphasis on its value

system and grants adequate space to all its people

and partners to express themselves freely and frankly.

It encourages all to work as a team, and strives hard

to inculcate such values in all its members. This spirit

of achieving as a team has been instrumental in keep-

ing the team together.

Toxics Link has had fruitful alliances with commu-

nity groups, hospitals, nursing associations, and also

with local government or local municipalities, to take

a certain project forward. In the change process,

several stakeholders have to be involved, and Toxics

Link tries to agree to its community perspective, and

help push this forward in their agenda. This rela-

tionship has usually taken the form of a person with

an independent view at the same table. That’s be-

cause of the credibility Toxics Link brings to the

table. In some cases it has had major influence on

key institutional practices, policies or statements, for

example, with the Central and State Pollution Con-

trol Boards, etc.

On issue-based alliances, Toxics Link works with

the organisation which impacts that issue. For its

broader everyday functioning, Toxics Link has stra-

tegic alliances with different groups. However, on

certain issues that need to influence institutional

policy, then the need could be for developing an

alliance or organising a joint workshop, etc, to be

able to influence decision-making.

Toxics Link has developed an enthusiastic relation-

ships with donor agencies. It currently has three large

institutional donors supporting programmatic ac-

tivities. Specific projects and research initiatives are

also supported by other agencies and foundations.

It’s been an eventful year, one in which Toxics Link has grownextensively in the depth and breadth of its capacities.It has seen fairly intensive and steady growth, and

now has, nationally, over 30 people on board, doing

cutting-edge work in several critical areas. This in-

stitutional strength gives Toxics Link the possibility

of making larger impacts as an organisation.

This very intensive capacity building has been made

possible through the induction of several systems

in the organisation, such as accountability, work plan-

ning, personnel development, and accounting and

financial systems. Toxics Link has taken the help of

quality professionals in various fields, in communi-

cation strategies, organisational systems, and finan-

cial systems.

For the year ahead, therefore, Toxics Link has deeper

and more intensive capacity with well worked-out

work programmes as well as transparent value and

accountability systems.

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Ge t t i ng the mos t ou t o f e ve r y re sou rce

The Just Environment Charitable Trust

H-2 (Ground Floor), Jungpura Extension, New Delhi 110 014

Income and Expenditure Account for the year ended on March 31, 2004

Expenditure Amount (in Rs) Income Amount (in Rs)

To total expenditure 8,196,154.24 By grant received 16,970,360.34

(Annexure A) Less: Unutilised grant c/f -8,774,206.10

8,196,154.24

To depreciation on vehicle 6,000.00 By donations 25,637.50

To donation 1,000.00 By interest from bank 1,062.00

To excess of income over expenditure

transferred to Capital Account 19,699.50

Total 8,222,853.74 Total 8,222,853.74

Significant Accounting Policies – Annexure D

As per our audit report of even date attached

For DEEP GARG & CO For THE JUST ENVIRONMENT CHARITABLE TRUST

Chartered Accountants

D.C. GARG RAVI AGARWAL ASHOK K. KHETAN

Par tner Trustee Trustee

FCA

Place: New Delhi

Date: 28-6-2004

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The Just Environment Charitable Trust

H-2 (Ground Floor), Jungpura Extension, New Delhi 110 014

Balance Sheet for the year ended on March 31, 2004

Liabilities Amount (in Rs) Assets Amount (in Rs)

Capital Account Fixed Assets

Opening balance 84,190.90 Vehicle 24,000.00

Corpus donation 135,270.00

Excess of income over expenditure Current Assets and Loans & Advances

transferred from I/E account 19,699.50 Loans & Advances

S. advances (Annexure C) 138,452.00

Total 239,160.40 TDS recoverable 4,376.00

Current Liabilities and Provision Current Assets

Current Liabilities Prepaid expenses 11,659.00

Unutilised grant (Annexure A) 8,774,206.10

Expenses payable (Annexure B) 126,611.00 Cash in Hand

Cash in hand (FC) 6,923.00

Cash at Bank

Central Bank of India (FC) 8,898,642.00

Central Bank of India (Saving) 55,925.50

Total 9,139,977.50 Total 9,139,977.50

Significant Accounting Policies – Annexure D

As per our audit report of even date attached

For DEEP GARG & CO For THE JUST ENVIRONMENT CHARITABLE TRUST

Chartered Accountants

D.C. GARG RAVI AGARWAL ASHOK K. KHETAN

Partner Trustee Trustee

FCA

Place: New Delhi

Date: 28-6-2004

DELHIH2 (Ground Floor), Jungpura Extension, New Delhi 110 014.

T: 91-11-24328006, 24320711 F: 91-11-24321747 E: tldelhi@toxicslink.org

CHENNAI8, Fourth Street, Venkateswara Nagar, Adyar, Chennai 600 020

T: 91-44-24914358, 24460387 E: tlchennai@toxicslink.org

MUMBAI4th Floor, CVOD Jain School, 84, Samuel Street, Dongri, Mumbai 400 009

T: 91-22-23435058, 23439651 E: tlmumbai@toxicslink.org

www.toxicslink.org

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