Agriculture needs better response from the Government. It has to win rural India’s heart, as the schemes meant for its people aren’t reaching them, writes VIPIN JOSHI
In April, horror visited the national capital when a 40-year old farmer, Gajendra Singh Kalyanwat, a farmer from Dausa, Rajasthan, committed suicide at a political rally organised by the Aam Aadmi Party against the Modi Government's land acquisition Bill. The entire nation was in a state of shock. News channels, social media, newspapers all reported the incident in a dramatic way as it had sparked a frantic round of political sparring in the middle of a national debate. There were accusations that the Government's policies were ‘anti-farmer’. However, this incident was short-lived as any other not-so-mainstream issue in the country. Soon, the entire attention was grabbed by the Indian Premier league and no one cared about Gajendra anymore.
According to figures from the Agricultural Ministry, the total number of suicides committed by farmers for agrarian reasons in the last three years stands at 3,313. If these suicides were not able to jolt the consciousness of our politicians and citizens, how could Gajendra’s death, that happened in broad daylight, affect the nation for more than two to three daysIJ
An article in First Post argued whether farmer suicides in India are hyped to divert funds, attract attention. It argues that a farmer’s suicide is a tried template for targeted State spending. As much as Rs6,530 crore were spent in 2008 for agricultural debt waiver and debt relief scheme. Five lakh rupees were given to each farmer in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra to re-pay loans. There were substantial relief packages in 31 districts of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala, where farmer suicides were reported. Maharashtra enacted a stringent anti-money lending law in 2008, and soon made it illegal for unlicensed money lenders to demand re-payment of the past loans. By 2012, Kerala too set up its debt relief commission. It is projected that there were substantial amounts of money spent for the benefit of farmers but the ground realities are different.
Small-holder farmers who considered to be vital for India's agriculture and rural economy, have received cheque of Rs200 as compensation. For them, compensation or no compensation — Government's namesake acts does not really make a difference. Even if they have good growth, they are not the ones who reap benefits from it.
“The agricultural sector is a profitable profession. Traders, companies and other large interest groups are earning profit while we are bearing the losses continuously”, rued Gajodhar, a 42-year old farmer from Muzaffarnagar reflecting upon the irony of agriculture in India today.
Giving an example of a tomato cultivator's plight, Gajodhar said, “We are forced to sell our produce for Rs20 per kilo, whereas after being processed into chutney, bottled and branded, it is sold for Rs80 for 100 grams. Why does this happenIJ Nobody asked me before fixing a rate for my produce.”
The lack of planning in Government's agriculture policies has not left the farmers with many options. “On the one hand, the Government want us to use organic manure, and on the other, it provides subsidy on chemical fertilisers. It focuses on groundwater conservation without providing irrigation facilities to the farmers. How does it want us to surviveIJ” questioned Ombiri from Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Clearly, there is a gap between the two — the farmers and the policymakers. The schemes and policies meant for them are not reaching them. Short-term solutions are not going to help. The Government needs to learn from several small initiatives that individual farmers are trying at their small farms and are showing great results using techniques of traditional farming. If it really wants to help those 70 per cent of the population that are dependent on agriculture, it will have to do extensive homework and then apply it on ground to win back the trust of the farmers.
(Courtesy: Charkha Features)