title: An investigative report on circumstances leading to death among Indian cotton farmers.
abstract: Andhra Pradesh, a southern state of India has been in the news for cotton farmers' deaths/suicides since 1998. The occurrence of 12 deaths among the farmers in the years 2001-2002 clustering around September-October expedited the investigation. The objective of our investigation was to identify the circumstances leading to death of cotton farmers in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh. Some of the broadly held hypotheses were also analyzed for their validity. The socioeconomic-political factors emerge as very strong determinants of deaths, given the occupational work environment.
authors.affiliation: Community Health Cell, Bangalore, India. rajanpatil@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Rajan R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Patil
mesh_terms: D000382:Agricultural Workers' Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000401:mortality*; D002423:Cause of Death; D003368:Gossypium; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011057:Politics; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
chemical_list: D010575:Pesticides