Farmers' suicides in India:A sour Truth

ANJAN KUMAR SAMAL | 03 Sep 2017

Farmers, soldiers and labourers are absolutely three gigantic pillars on which a nation's prosperity stands and depends. No country in this world can prosper by neglecting these three prime forces towards any nation's socio-economic development. Despite of thousands of repeated suicide of Indian poor farmers across the country from the period of Land Acquisition till the recent trends of GST and govt. Of India's mute speculation in regard to these suicide now a day is turning the mindset of common Indian from the world of trust towards the world of distrust on the Union Govt. Of India.

The nation that always does proud for her soldiers  seems forget to neither proud nor appraise our farmers   since a long period of time is a matter of sorrow and distress for the Indian farmers now a day. At this point of time, when the flooded devastation is caused with more and more damages  in the field of agriculture along with many hurdles like high debt burdens and huge losses in the recent past in front of Indian farmer's  agrian path no doubt broke down their financial backbone. We live as they feed us, we prosper as they produce for us and we lovingly groom as they take care of us.

 Isn't the time for India to take care of them?

Isn't the right choice for our lax and irresponsible government in regard to livelihood of Indian farmers to take up their issues on the utmost priority basis?

Farmers, soldiers and laborers  are absolutely three gigantic pillar on which a Nation's prosperity stands and depends. No country in this world can prosper by neglecting these three prime forces towards  any nation's socio-economic  development. Despite of thousands of repeated suicide of Indian poor farmers across the country from the period of Land Acquisition till the recent trends of GST and govt. Of India's mute speculation in regard to these suicide now a day is turning the mindset of common Indian from the world of trust towards the world of distrust on the Union Govt. Of India.

But a line of our Prime Minister's Independence Day Speech just mere reflects a ray of hope for the sake of Indian Farmers when his belated sympathetic note for our farmers thrown from the great walls of LAL QUILLA during the Seventy First Indian Independence day was observed.

The reducing trends of not cultivating staple food of India like Rice and wheat in the name of commercialization of agriculture just rewinding the very past days of our farmers as was happened during the British reign in India in the pre independent period. In stead of recent days huge oppositions of our own farmers organization by a country wide strikes, Dharnas and rallies no permanent solution unveiled yet by the respected government of India.

Let us have some statistical point of view in regard to farmer's suicide across the country. In 2014 the National Crime Record Bureau of India reported 5650farmer suicides. The highest number of farmer suicides were recorded in 2004 when 18241farmers committed suicides. The farmers suicide rate in India has been ranged between 1.4 and 1.8 per 1 lakh total population of Indian farmers over a period of 10 year through 2005.Absolutely India is an agrian nation with around more than 70% of it's total population depending directly or indirectly upon agriculture. Farmers suicide in total account for 11.2% of all the suicides in India. Many agrian activist and economists have already offered a bunch of conflicting and biased reasons including many concerned Indian authorities led to many complex and puzzled outcome which can not be termed as the final and permanent solution to wipe out sorrow and distress of our KISHANN BROTHERS & SISTERS(FARMERS).

There are also accusation of states for manipulating the real data on this particular issue of farmer suicides only to keep alive their reapective political race for their vested political interest.In 2014 the total farmers suicides was 12360and in increased to 12602 in 2015.

Due to manipulation in data by many states of India only 6867 cases of suicides were reported from  mere 5 states ,i.e. (Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana + Tamil Nadu) only and rest of 24 states report still pending as per an concerned official of National Crime Record Bureau.

The states which have had largest number of farmer suicides for several years include: Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Chattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat . This is 55% of 2015's numbers, from just 5 states. Information from states like Punjab which witnessed a high number of suicides in 2016-17, or Odisha where the matter of farmer suicides has been a big public debate for years now, or Andhra Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh etc., which are usually in the list of largest farmer suicide states, is not available from any reliable source. The Government claimed in the Supreme Court that suicides are declining. With the available information, we contest this. While in Karnataka, there appears to be a small decline, in MP there appears to have been an increase.