India is primarily an agricultural country. More than 75% of the population depends on agriculture. Farmers are the backbone of the nation. Without them, we cannot survive.
They sweat it out day in day out without rest. They are highly involved in tilling the soil, sowing the seeds, watering the fields, reaping and harvesting the crop and then they sell it to the market.
However, on the dark side, more than 12,000 farmers have ended their lives committed suicide in Maharashtra in three years between 2015-2018.
Out of the total 12,021 farmer suicides, 6,888 cases were identified to be eligible for government aid after scrutiny by district-level committees, Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Subhash Deshmukh told the House in a written response.
Deshmukh added that family members of 6,845 farmers have been given some good financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh each, by far.
This year alone between January and March, 610 farmers committed suicide out of which 192 cases were eligible for financial aid, confessed the BJP-led Maharashtra government.
The state has also launched several welfare schemes, including a loan waiver. In the drought-hit Aurangabad region, 4,124 farmers ended their lives in the last 4 years.
Government’s admission now sheds light on the fact that despite all these several measures, the state failed to sort out the agrarian crisis.
The Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), based in Delhi, learnt that given an option, majority of farmers in India would prefer to take up some other work.
The study observed that 70 per cent of respondents added that their crops were ruined due to unseasonal rains, drought, floods and pest attack.
Debt, crop failure, unable to repay debt led to immense pressure from debtors and unable to obtain enough money for daughter’s marriage or other religious activities, chronic severe illness, infamous practices like alcohol addiction, gambling have also been listed as major reasons for farmers’ suicide in India.
(Inputs from PTI)