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Last December's unseasonal rains have only made matters worse for the state's already badly battered farm sector
The unseasonal rains that lashed Orissa last December swept away not just 52-year-old farmer Ashok Khatua's standing paddy crop but also his will to live. The suicide was yet another 'living' proof of the worsening agricultural crisis in the state. But who would have imagined that Khatua's son, Sujit, a teacher in a nearby private school, would follow suit and hang himself from the very tree from which he brought down his father's body just hours ago?
It was the morning of December 27. Ashok, a resident of Dhirpur village in Bargarh district, had left for his 3.5-acre farm the previous night. When the father of three did not return until 9 AM, his family members, who were preparing for his daughter's impending wedding, and other villagers launched a search. They fanned out in different directions. Sujit found his father hanging from a tree. In a state of shock, the young man killed himself.
The police recovered the two bodies – the father was lying on the ground, the son was hanging from the tree. The family was intimated, autopsies conducted and the bodies were handed over for the last rites. Amid all this, government officials were conspicuous by their absence.
Harvest time was approaching and the paddy crop in Ashok's farm was ripe. The rains came down without warning and the entire crop was damaged, leaving the debt-ridden farmer completely devastated. Says Anil Khatua, brother of the deceased peasant: “He was so depressed that he stopped talking to us. We thought time would heal him. But it didn't.” Talking about his nephew, Anil says: “He was very attached to his father and could not bear the shock. It was awful. Within minutes, the entire family was destroyed.”
Documents revealed that Ashok had taken a loan of Rs 20,000 from the local co-operative society, besides borrowing Rs 50,000 from relatives. Says Kishori, his widow: “I am aware of the loan. Tell me, how can I ever repay the sum. I have a family to run and a marriageable daughter.” She appealed to the government for help.
In a similar incident in Gopeipali village of Bargarh district, a marginal farmer Shiba Bhoi, 42, committed suicide on December 27 by consuming pesticide in his field after the unseasonal rain damaged his crop. He was rushed to Bargarh Hospital but he died the next evening.
Shiba had less than one acre of land and tilled other farms on a rental basis. He left behind two small daughters and a widow who reside in a dilapidated house in the village. The district administration sanctioned Rs 10,000 in both cases but did nothing more than that. “I have full sympathy for the bereaved families. I have asked my officers to find out how we can include their names in various government schemes,” Bhabagrahi Mishra, Bargarh collector, told TSI.
But the cases of Ashok and Shiba are just the tip of the iceberg. Farmer suicides have become alarmingly common in Orissa. Since no government effort is made to create awareness among farmers about the challenges posed by natural calamities, they are often driven to take desperate measures. Farmer leaders have pilloried the government for not taking prompt action to rescue the poor peasants from the situation created by unseasonal rainfall.
Farmers have rejected the relief package offered by the government – Rs 2000 per hectare. Says Ashok Pradhan, convenor, Western Orissa Farmers Coordination Committee: “We want proper compensation. Rs 2000 per hectare means Rs 800 per acre of land. What purpose can a meagre Rs 800 serve?”
Pradhan suggested that the government should provide a compensation of Rs 15,000 per acre to the affected farmers for both irrigated and non-irrigated land. The farmers' association recently organised demonstration and burnt copies of the relief package as a mark of protest.
Meanwhile, the Union government committee that visited the affected districts after the unseasonal rain is convinced that the damage was ‘extensive’. "The crop loss due to unseasonal rain in December is extensive as well as substantial. We will submit our report to the Centre shortly," Pankaj Kumar, joint secretary in the Union agriculture ministry, who is heading the team, told reporters in Bhubaneswar after meeting Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik and other senior state officials.
Experts attribute Orissa's worsening agrarian crisis to the state government's emphasis on rapid industrialisation at the expense of agriculture. The suicide rate among farmers is mounting in the face of increasing cost of cultivation and debt. “Industry and agriculture are equally important for the growth of the state. The government has to change its attitude if it is committed to the welfare of farmers,” says KC Panda, a retired professor.
Orissa agriculture minister Damodar Rout revealed in the state Assembly that 2,575 farmers have committed suicide during 2000-2008 – 345 in 2002, 365 in 2003, and 378 in 2004. The year-wise farmer suicide figures indicated that the number rose from 199 suicidal deaths in 2000 to 378 in 2004. Subsequently, 254 farmers committed suicide in 2005, 283 in 2006 and 235 in 2007. The figure in 2008 was 260. But the number of cases in 2009 and 2010 is higher because of constant crop loss. Though official figures aren't available, the farmers' body claims over 300 have committed suicide in the past two years.
Meanwhile, Opposition leaders allege the state government is deliberately trying to uproot farmers in order to please a few industrialists. “The government wants to divert agriculture land for industrial use. Farmers do not want to remain in agriculture in these circumstances. So we apprehend a drastic fall in farm output in the coming days,” says Gourahari Mishra, Bargarh district president of BJP. Although political arguments can keep continuing, the fact is that the value of a human life has degraded below what can be imagined. Can monetary support save these lives? The answer is unanimous - yes! The pity of it is - nobody's giving.
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Last December's unseasonal rains have only made matters worse for the state's already badly battered farm sector
The unseasonal rains that lashed Orissa last December swept away not just 52-year-old farmer Ashok Khatua's standing paddy crop but also his will to live. The suicide was yet another 'living' proof of the worsening agricultural crisis in the state. But who would have imagined that Khatua's son, Sujit, a teacher in a nearby private school, would follow suit and hang himself from the very tree from which he brought down his father's body just hours ago?
It was the morning of December 27. Ashok, a resident of Dhirpur village in Bargarh district, had left for his 3.5-acre farm the previous night. When the father of three did not return until 9 AM, his family members, who were preparing for his daughter's impending wedding, and other villagers launched a search. They fanned out in different directions. Sujit found his father hanging from a tree. In a state of shock, the young man killed himself.
The police recovered the two bodies – the father was lying on the ground, the son was hanging from the tree. The family was intimated, autopsies conducted and the bodies were handed over for the last rites. Amid all this, government officials were conspicuous by their absence.
Harvest time was approaching and the paddy crop in Ashok's farm was ripe. The rains came down without warning and the entire crop was damaged, leaving the debt-ridden farmer completely devastated. Says Anil Khatua, brother of the deceased peasant: “He was so depressed that he stopped talking to us. We thought time would heal him. But it didn't.” Talking about his nephew, Anil says: “He was very attached to his father and could not bear the shock. It was awful. Within minutes, the entire family was destroyed.”
Documents revealed that Ashok had taken a loan of Rs 20,000 from the local co-operative society, besides borrowing Rs 50,000 from relatives. Says Kishori, his widow: “I am aware of the loan. Tell me, how can I ever repay the sum. I have a family to run and a marriageable daughter.” She appealed to the government for help.
In a similar incident in Gopeipali village of Bargarh district, a marginal farmer Shiba Bhoi, 42, committed suicide on December 27 by consuming pesticide in his field after the unseasonal rain damaged his crop. He was rushed to Bargarh Hospital but he died the next evening.
Shiba had less than one acre of land and tilled other farms on a rental basis. He left behind two small daughters and a widow who reside in a dilapidated house in the village. The district administration sanctioned Rs 10,000 in both cases but did nothing more than that. “I have full sympathy for the bereaved families. I have asked my officers to find out how we can include their names in various government schemes,” Bhabagrahi Mishra, Bargarh collector, told TSI.
But the cases of Ashok and Shiba are just the tip of the iceberg. Farmer suicides have become alarmingly common in Orissa. Since no government effort is made to create awareness among farmers about the challenges posed by natural calamities, they are often driven to take desperate measures. Farmer leaders have pilloried the government for not taking prompt action to rescue the poor peasants from the situation created by unseasonal rainfall.
Farmers have rejected the relief package offered by the government – Rs 2000 per hectare. Says Ashok Pradhan, convenor, Western Orissa Farmers Coordination Committee: “We want proper compensation. Rs 2000 per hectare means Rs 800 per acre of land. What purpose can a meagre Rs 800 serve?”
Pradhan suggested that the government should provide a compensation of Rs 15,000 per acre to the affected farmers for both irrigated and non-irrigated land. The farmers' association recently organised demonstration and burnt copies of the relief package as a mark of protest.
Meanwhile, the Union government committee that visited the affected districts after the unseasonal rain is convinced that the damage was ‘extensive’. "The crop loss due to unseasonal rain in December is extensive as well as substantial. We will submit our report to the Centre shortly," Pankaj Kumar, joint secretary in the Union agriculture ministry, who is heading the team, told reporters in Bhubaneswar after meeting Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik and other senior state officials.
Experts attribute Orissa's worsening agrarian crisis to the state government's emphasis on rapid industrialisation at the expense of agriculture. The suicide rate among farmers is mounting in the face of increasing cost of cultivation and debt. “Industry and agriculture are equally important for the growth of the state. The government has to change its attitude if it is committed to the welfare of farmers,” says KC Panda, a retired professor.
Orissa agriculture minister Damodar Rout revealed in the state Assembly that 2,575 farmers have committed suicide during 2000-2008 – 345 in 2002, 365 in 2003, and 378 in 2004. The year-wise farmer suicide figures indicated that the number rose from 199 suicidal deaths in 2000 to 378 in 2004. Subsequently, 254 farmers committed suicide in 2005, 283 in 2006 and 235 in 2007. The figure in 2008 was 260. But the number of cases in 2009 and 2010 is higher because of constant crop loss. Though official figures aren't available, the farmers' body claims over 300 have committed suicide in the past two years.
Meanwhile, Opposition leaders allege the state government is deliberately trying to uproot farmers in order to please a few industrialists. “The government wants to divert agriculture land for industrial use. Farmers do not want to remain in agriculture in these circumstances. So we apprehend a drastic fall in farm output in the coming days,” says Gourahari Mishra, Bargarh district president of BJP. Although political arguments can keep continuing, the fact is that the value of a human life has degraded below what can be imagined. Can monetary support save these lives? The answer is unanimous - yes! The pity of it is - nobody's giving.
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM ranks No 1 in International Exposure in the 'Third Mail Today B-School Survey'
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri Dean Business School IIPM
IIPM Excom Prof Rajita Chaudhuri
Kapil Sibal’s voters want Jan Lokpal, not Government-proposed Lokpal Bill
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IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS
'Thorns to Competition' - You can order your copy online from here
IIPM Mumbai Campus
