Why Indian women are choosing to be sterilised as climate crisis takes its toll

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “So I decided to get the hysterectomy done, and get rid of this every month ‘pain and stain’.” Ms Owhal is one of hundreds of women in the district of Beed who have been forced to make an unthinkable choice: having their wombs removed in order to earn a daily wage in gruelling work as a migrant sugarcane worker. open image in gallery Jayashree Owhal, a farmer working in sugarcane fields, says she carries 50kg of weight on her head and loads it into tractors It has forced many women to leave their homes and travel to the Kolhapur district, over 240 miles away, to work in the physically demanding sugarcane industry. Ms Waghmare had no option but to bring her baby when she went to work in the sugarcane fields Beyond economic hardships there is a significant personal toll, Ms Bhardwaj added, “including the loss of health and well-being due to forced labour in adverse conditions and the mental and psychological toll of undergoing procedures like hysterectomies”. I feel dizzy while carrying the bundles of cane.” The hysterectomy procedure can take a toll on women’s mental health, Ms Bhardwaj explains.