It’s ironical to learn about the alleged suicide of farmers in the State. They involve debt trap from a few thousands to a few lakhs of rupees coupled with crop failure. The irony lies in the more affluent amongst the indebted happily negotiating matters from overseas taking umbrage under the loopholes in the extradition treaty. The projection of these two pieces of news exposes the hollowness of our claim to faster growth. The governmental backup and systematic support to industrialists is well-known. The farmer does not have any social security of any tangible nature, save and except the limited coverage of some form of crop insurance. There is no provident fund and no ESI schemes for the farmers. The staying power of the farmers has been weakened on account of continuous neglect. As against this, the urban rich indulge in conspicuous consumption. It is apparent that a section of the society has become ultra rich whereas the rural sector has languished. There is hardly anyone to hold the hands that till the ground, toil and produce food.
An authority like BIFR or any other substitute has been empowered to wave liabilities of industrialists, direct payment in instalments, grant moratorium, etc. The farmer instead faces the wrath of the banker or the private moneylender, when it has resource constraints, and, more so, when there is a crop failure.
It is imperative in the interest of the society that the weaker sections are protected and the rich looters are hounded by due process of law. Every bank should be under a direction to review the credit card of ots loanees in the agrarian-rural sector. This review should have the object of a consideration with sympathy and empathy for the underdog. Having research institutes for agriculture has not helped in so far as Odisha is concerned. We have been unable to take full advantage of the CRRI and the CIFA. A quantification of all benefits given to industry vis-à-vis those stated to be given to the agro-rural sector is now overdue. Many laws are required to be substantially amended or substituted. This relates to both organised industrial sector and the unorganised rural economy.
If such a comparative study is undertaken, the growth of Odisha at a rate lower than the BIMARU States (Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh) will throw up the inherent reasons which lie in neglect of the agro-rural sector. According to available reports, in the year 2016-17, Odisha could well go down with the dishonour of being the poorest in economic growth. According to the latest data released by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) at the end of the 12th Plan, Odisha was indicating an average growth rate lower than that of Bihar, UP, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
To lesson from the above has already been echoed in the Prime Minister’s call for village development and village level administration, including local planning, etc. The agrarian laws require a revisit without any avoidable delay. One is reminded of Gandhi’s statement, “India lives in its villages”. These villages have to be activated through meaningful Gram Sabhas or Palli Sabhas integrated into the Panchayati Raj system. Unfortunately, the policy-orientation is not geared towards such an objective. This is the scenario that leads a 23 year old farmer allegedly committing suicide in Bargarh district on Sunday last. The alleged suicide is attributed to failure of crop and indebtedness on the part of the victim. The borrowing was limited to Rs.2 lakh for enabling better farming. Though the growth of the crops was good, unseasonal rain and thunder shower damaged the crop in a substantial area under sharecropping by the victim. The large number of suicides does indicate a failure of policies or lack of policies relating to the agro-rural sector. Till this sector is not strengthened and agriculture is not facilitated, small amounts of loan look unaffordable to the destitute farmer.
In the cropping pattern, there is no co-relation between vital inputs like irrigation facilities and the most suitable cropping pattern, given the condition of the land and water, etc. Very often, areas under cash crops require a huge quantity of water, whereas the availability of water is meagre and continuously under stress. Sprinkle and drip irrigations, though officially encouraged, are hardly gaining ground because of absentee landlordism and lack of capital investment in the agro-rural sector.
The startups should generate themselves in the agro-rural sector, and panchayat-based industries ought to be encouraged under the MSME sector. The banks continue to deny the facility to this sector in the manner mandated. This, in turn, makes units sick and agriculture fails. lack of harmony between the urban and rural sectors is clearly vindicated by the disoriented youths. They are the section of the society for whom the future lies ahead. Instead of migrating to cities, there should be a turning back to the villages and ensure-wise investments in the rural economy. The youths, instead of being lured by inferior jobs, should be encouraged to be productive on their own. This would lead to a regeneration and rejuvenation of the agro-rural economy. In this movement, no doubt the youths have to come to the forefront, but this also calls for the support and guidance of the elder ones. The youths, therefore, have a difficult task ahead. They have to sensitise themselves against propaganda and make a sincere effort at changing the ground under their own feet. This requires the youths at the agro-rural level to be organised and think of the areas they live in and of the land that they stand upon. It is only then that the startups will not turn out to be upstarts. Creating institutions like commissions is a diffusion of responsibility. The need of the hour is, however, concentrated and focussed attention to the agro-rural sector, so as to make it thriving and successful.
This further calls for this unorganised sector to get oranised through the help of local youths. The Palli or Gram Sabhas ought to demand their share in planning and growth and act as representative catalyst bodies protecting the interest of the local community. The Forest Dwellers Act and the land Acquisition Act have built-in provisions for the Gram or Palli Sabhas to play out their role in a meaningful manner. The agro-rural sector demands attention in the spheres of healthcare, education, diversification of activities and infrastructure. The urban rich get a free ambulance whereas the rural poor have to be lifted and carried by human shoulders. The hiatus has to be bridged by serious and fundamental structural changes and readjustments. The youths have an arduous task ahead and should formulate their organised activities with proper ideas and ideals. In this endeavour, all have to join hands and the youth power has to assert itself more prominently and meaningfully. And, 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)