NEW DELHI:Shopkeepers in a southern Indian state began removing Pepsi and Coke from their shelves Wednesday after unions called for a boycott of the softdrink giants, urging consumers to shun foreign brands.
Pepsi and Coke sell a range of products across India, including softdrinks and bottled water, and the boycott proposal in Tamil Nadu could affect more than a million outlets in India’s most prosperous state, which is home to nearly 70 million people.
Trade unions in Tamil Nadu said they targeted the US firms in a broad swipe at foreign businesses as tempers flared after authorities issued a ban last year on a traditional bull-wrestling festival known as Jallikattu.
The court decision, which followed a legal challenge by US-based People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), sparked a huge backlash and some supporters of the ancient custom fumed over meddling from abroad. There is no suggestion the softdrinks firms were in any way involved in the ban.
“There are multiple reasons behind the boycott, but most important is how PETA tried to kill Jallikattu,” T. Vellaiyan, president of Tamil Nadu Traders Associations, told AFP.
“We have appealed to traders to stop selling products from Coke and Pepsi from today to make this campaign a success.”
The unions have also urged people to buy local beverages instead because they do not “use chemicals and are healthier than the foreign products.”
India’s leading beverage association expressed disappointment at the proposed ban, saying Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. provided direct employment to 2,000 families in the state.
It is not the first time Pepsi and Coke have faced hurdles in Tamil Nadu.
The softdrink giants have been blamed for draining groundwater in the state, which has been suffering through a severe drought for roughly two years.
The handful of bottling plants run by the two companies in Tamil Nadu have been the site of angry protests, with permission to build at least three new facilities being withdrawn amid violent rallies by farmers.
More than 200 farmers have committed suicide in Tamil Nadu in recent months following crop failure due to poor rainfall and inadequate water for irrigation.
The controversial and sometimes deadly Jallikattu festival was banned by India’s top court last year, but authorities bowed to public outcry and moved to overturn the ruling in January.
Traders in southern India call for ban on Pepsi, Coke
Traders in southern India call for ban on Pepsi, Coke
Israeli firm loses British Army contract bid
- Subsidiary Elbit Systems UK’s campaign for $2.6bn program was marred by controversy
- Senior govt civil servant overseeing contract was dined, handed free Israel tour
LONDON: A UK subsidiary of Israeli weapons giant Elbit Systems has lost its bid to win a prominent British Army contract, The Times reported.
The loss followed high-profile reporting on controversy surrounding Elbit Systems UK’s handling of the bid.
The subsidiary led one of two major arms consortiums attempting to secure the $2.6 billion bid to prepare British soldiers for war and overhaul army standards.
Rivaling Elbit, the other consortium led by Raytheon UK, a British subsidiary of the US defense giant, ultimately won the contract, a Ministry of Defence insider told The Times.
It had been decided following an intricate process that Raytheon was a “better candidate,” the source said.
Elbit Systems UK’s controversial handling of its contract campaign was revealed in reports by The Times.
A whistleblower had compiled a dossier surrounding the bid that was shown to the MoD last August, though the report was privately revealed to the ministry months earlier.
It alleged that Elbit UK had breached business appointment rules when Philip Kimber, a former British Army brigadier, had reportedly shared information with the firm after leaving the military.
Kimber attending critical meetings at the firm to discuss the training contract that he had once overseen at the ministry, the report alleged.
In one case, Kimber was present in an Elbit meeting and sitting out of view of a camera. He reportedly said he “should not be there,” according to the whistleblower’s report.
In response to a freedom of information request, the MoD later admitted that it had held the dossier for seven months without investigating its claims. Insiders at the ministry blamed the investigative delay on “administrative oversight.”
A month after being pushed on the allegations by The Times, a senior civil servant completed an “assurance review” in September and found that business appointment rules had not been breached.
Other allegations concerned lunches and dinners hosted by Elbit UK in which civil servants at the heart of the contract decision process were invited.
One senior civil servant was dined by the British subsidiary seven times, while rival Raytheon did not host events.
Mike Cooper, the senior responsible owner at army headquarters for the army training program, also traveled to Jerusalem with two senior British military officers.
He took part in a sightseeing tour funded by Elbit Systems, the British subsidiary’s parent company.
In response to the allegations, an MoD spokesperson said in a statement: “The collective training transformation programme will modernise training for soldiers to ensure the British Army can face down the threats of the future.
“We will not comment further until a preferred tenderer announcement is made public in due course.”
Amid mounting criticism of Israel within the British military establishment, four former senior army officers, in a letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, recently urged the government to end involvement with Israeli-owned or Israeli-supported weapons companies.
“Now is not the time to return to business as usual with the Israeli government,” they wrote, urging harsher sanctions.
