101 East

Why are so many Indian sugarcane cutters removing their wombs?

We investigate the fate of India’s female sugarcane workers and ask why so many are having invasive surgery.

India is the world’s largest sugar producer and, each year, one million workers harvest the sugarcane fields.

Families travel far from home to live in rough camps by the fields, where they work long days under the hot sun, with only one day off a month.

But a strange phenomenon is appearing among the female workers; they complain of severe abdominal pains and acute tiredness. This has led to one in every three having her womb removed.

101 East investigates why these women are being persuaded to have invasive surgery and what is behind their pain.