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Farmers suicides on the rise alarmingly

Kashmir Times. Dated: 7/22/2017 3:25:56 PM

Dear Editor,
The Farmers who provide food and other eatables to the people of the whole country are being forced by the circumstances created by the policies by the successive governments to commit suicides which is on rise alarmingly leaving behind their families in utter distress. Around three lakh farmers have reportedly committed suicides so far. The peasants with small land holdings or no holdings at all are the worst victims of the age old system of exploitation, victimsation and high handedness of the rural money lenders.
There are many factors which appears to be responsible for the situation like this. One major factor is debt taken from the money lenders, from Banks and cooperative societies for the purchase of seeds and fertilizers. Other factor may be the high cost seeds and fertilizers sold by the multinational companies luring the farmers that it will help them to more yield of their produce. Earlier the farmers used to keep a part of they produce as seeds are sowing the same next seasons.
But now they have to purchase seeds and fertilizer from the market at exorbitant rates and when due to climatic degration the produce is not as they expected they become desperate and in great depression they commit suicides on being not able to repay the loan taken by them. There are reports in the news media that farmers in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra have spilled their milk on roads and destroyed their agricultural produce in the fields or on the roads on failing to get as much money as they spent on purchase of seeds and fertilizers by selling it in the market and for each crop they have to purchase seeds from the market. The kind of seeds are produce by the MNC’s to create their hedge money ones seeds.
The farmers in Madhya Pradesh recently launched dagitation for loan waiver, for raise in minimum support price (MSP) at the rate one and half time of the actual money spent by them. They were reportedly lathi charged and fired upon killing about half a dozen of farmers brutely . The Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan made an announcement to purchase onion from the farmers at the rate of Rs. 8 per Kg upto the end of the month and to create Debt but within a few days this practice came to an end leaving poor farmers in lurch.
The CM has also announced to create fund of Rs. 1000 crore as price Balance Fund assuring the farmers that they will be paid half the amount of their produce in the market itself and balance will be deposited into their bank accounts. The Maharashtra C.M announced waiving off small and medium farmer’s loans. The farmer suicides are on the rise alarmingly which is a matter of serious concern for all.
—Krishan Singh,
Talab Tillo, Jammu.