loss of life of several farmers in different parts of the country is a matter of great concern. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), there were 5,650 farmer suicide cases in 2014. By 2015, this figure showed an increase of 42 per cent taking the cases of suicide to 8,007. The NCRB blamed erratic and inadequate monsoon to be the dominant reason leading to the suicides.
There is normally a vociferous demand to pay compensation, when such events take place. Political leaders compete with one another in demanding compensation, which is not a solution to the chronic problem. A causative analysis of the reasons that lead to such unfortunate events has not been undertaken in a comprehensive manner. The Citizens Resources and Action Initiative, an NGO, had filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court demanding, inter alia, compensation to the families of the farmers who had committed suicide. On Friday last, a Bench comprising Chief Justice JS Khehar, Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Sanjay K Kaul dealt with this matter. The court’s reaction was demonstrated through its observation, “It is not possible for the court to grant compensation every time a farmer commits suicide. But why does he commit suicideIJ If the Government deals with the reasons that force farmers to commit suicide and devises a plan to rescue distressed farmers, only then will suicide stop.” The Chief Justice further added, “The distress situation for a farmer can arise from a variety of reasons, be it flood, drought or debt. When a bank gives loan to a farmer, it does so being satisfied about the farmer’s capacity to repay it. But if there is a distress situation where the farmer is unable to pay loan, the banks must take that into account too.” The Bench further explained to the Central Government that the farmer is also a victim even when there is a bumper crop. It said, “When the farmer gets a surplus crop production, he is never able to break even as he resorts to distress selling as the Government is not willing to take his produce. For instance, a sugarcane farmer, who gets a bumper production in a year, ends up selling to the mills at a very low price. The Government needs to evolve something that can give him succour.”
The Supreme Court has called upon the Central Government to unearth the root cause and prepare a roadmap within the next few weeks to ensure that the instances of such suicide are significantly curbed. When the Executive and the legislature have been a little apathetic in analysing the root causes of death of farmers and in taking suitable remedial measures, it is but natural for the judiciary to positively intervene in the matter. The reasons of such sad events are systemic in nature. The frequency of such deaths comes to the forefront when the system is not remedied. In effect and on the ground level, there is a lack of linkage between generation of agro products and their timely preservation or utilisation in an economically viable manner.
The present distress sale of vegetables in Odisha is a sad commentary on the lack of warehousing facilities and market support of the required quality. Food processing industry has not got the proper kick start so as to ensure proper utilisation of agro products and suitable commercial transaction. Even, the paddy grower has his problems in dealing with his procurement agencies. The mandis are not rationally organised to protect the interest of the farming community. Prof MS Swaminathan and others suggested years ago a response mechanism to remedy the distress situation through a comprehensive scheme. The same idea has been mooted by the Supreme Court when the Chief Justice said, “Keep your mind open. A scheme of this nature will be a service to the nation. A lot can be achieved when the mind is open. These are important issues which have not been tackled for decades. There is surplus production in one area where farmers do not get the invested amount back as prices fall. Some farmers are told to grow only sugarcane meant to be sold to sugar mills. And then, the prices are fixed so low that the economy of farmers breaks down. Give us a concrete plan of action after talking to all concerned.” It is heartening to see that the apex court has gone into the meat of the matter and called upon the Government to suggest a comprehensive scheme to create a framework to prevent farmers’ suicide. Such a scheme has to be realistic and deal with the real life situation. Rural credit, especially in the agro sector, needs to be simplified and made more responsive. Right from the stage of provision of adequate quality inputs, the agro sector has to be nurtured to ensure that farmers get the appropriate return. The accretion of wealth among the farming community is very poor. But a scheme to tackle the situation must have a spread-out effect. It has to comprehensively include many faceted sub-schemes woven into the main scheme itself. Food processing units can come up in the MSME sector which remains grossly neglected with the avowed emphasis on heavy industries.
The recent happenings in Keonjhar of Odisha have demonstrated the vegetable farmers’ plight when there is no effective demand and no adequate return. Keonjhar had a food processing unit; and at that time, there was no question of distress sale. From 2006, this unit is closed. No tangible efforts are forthcoming to ensure its revival, which can provide market security to vegetable growers and ensure quicker and adequate returns to the farmers. Assured irrigation is a factor that has been neglected over the last decade or so. We have to look at all forms of irrigation and ensure implementation of the most suitable one for the specific area concerned. The storage and marketing facilities have to be integrated with the plans of the farming community.
In a wider sense, the agro sector requires specific, detailed and intensive attention to facilitate its growth which alone shall add to rural wealth. In this venture, the youth power has been rather indolent and should have been in the forefront with demands emanating from the grassroots. Agro and other rural linked industries are not receiving adequate attention notwithstanding the built-in benefits of the MSME Act. Bankers are not adequately focusing themselves on the MSME sector. Once this sector is bestowed with adequate attention, the wider range of agro-linked activities like fisheries, horticulture, floriculture, commercial exploitation of forest produce, etc., would automatically have regeneration. Once the cyclic effects start, its impact would gradually be translated into the alterations of the structural framework of the agro sector, giving a fillip to the accretion of rural prosperity. This, in turn, would prevent the prevalent migration of our working force to other States ranging up to Jammu & Kashmir and Tamil Nadu. The focus in this direction is not being asserted by the dominant voter population, i.e., the youths. A ruling party promises employment but fails to deliver in the absence of innovative programmes of grassroots development. Regeneration has to take place from within for the youth power to be assertive in demanding formulation and implementation of programmes of the right nature so as to fulfil their socioeconomic requirements towards a greater prosperity. In this direction, all sections of the community have to contribute their might. This also calls for an imaginative leadership which has a new way of looking at things to break from the old order. This, in turn, calls for active involvement on the part of one and all. And surely, this concerns us all!
(The writer, a Senior Advocate, is a former All India Service officer, a former diplomat, a former editor, a former President of Orissa High Court Bar Association and a former Advocate General of Odisha. jayantdas@hotmail.com)