The army of cotton growers started…

Uzbekistan: The army of cotton growers started the battle for harvest (photo)

At the photo: The students of Urgench construction college prior to the departure to cropping. Photo © by Sergey Naumov

The cropping of raw-cotton is launched in the Khoresm Oblast of Uzbekistan. It is traditionally driven by the populations and dozens of thousands of students of secondary and higher education institutions. The decision to send the youth to the fields was made by local authorities prior to Ramadan holiday – the end of sacred month of Muslim fast (this year it was September 21).

The cotton growers, getting into buses

On August 8, the decree of Labor Ministry and Healthcare Ministry approved new amendments in the List of works with unfavorable labor conditions that prohibits the employment of people younger than 18. The list was updated under the implementation of convention on minimum labor age and prohibition of worst forms of child labor, ratified by Uzbekistan in April of 2008.

Undoubtedly, first and second year students in the colleges of the Khoresm Oblast, already sent to the fields, have not reached adult age. So far it is not clear whether they are legally allowed to be employed at the cotton plantations and, if this is the case, what reasons the government has. By the way, the exact list of the prohibited works is kept in secret and qualified as “official secret”.

The bags are loaded in the trucks

Mainly, it is police department which is in charge of youth healthcare although this year new thing was introduced in the preparation of the cotton bus column: each column is accompanied by Ambulance vehicle. Obviously, this decision is well reasoned.

Last weekend Urgench hosted the session of extraordinary anti-epidemic Commission of the Khoresm Oblast that held its first session less than a month ago. Although the commission members spoke mainly about the propagation of the virus of hemorrhagic fever outside of country they also implied complicated epizootic and epidemic situation in the Khoresm Oblast itself.

This is the reason why the second commission session took place prior to the beginning of the cotton harvesting. The fields will be occupied by hundreds of thousands people, deprived of access to modern sanitary and hygienic conditions and drinking water that may lead to the growth of digestive deceases.

The cotton growers under convoy

The source in the regional clinic hospital informed Ferghana.Ru that “hot summer facilitated to the growth of dangerous infections and the fact of sending the students to the cotton harvesting significantly increases the risk of infection disperse. The appearance of lice and helmint at homes is as usual in Khoresm as head cold.

Sergey Naumov (Urgench)