With about of our population employed in Agriculture and allied activities, increasing number of farmer suicides paint a grim picture regarding the income equality in the country. Around 1500 farmer suicides occur per year and forms around 11% of all suicides. Worse is suppressing the real causes of such suicides by politicization of the issue. The mains causes are:
> Small holdings: High initial investments for better productivity, low access to credit, lack of micro-irrigation facilities and poor storage facilities make small holdings unviable.
> Indebtness: Loans pending to private moneylenders makes the farmer fall into debt traps.
> Dependence on cash crops: Increased during green revolution, it continues to persist and exposes farmers to the vagarities of the market.
Way forward:
> Increased access to low-interest credit through financial inclusion schemes such as Jan Dhan Yojna.
> States must enact acts against private money lenders, and the Governor must protect the scheduled areas from them.
> Effective irrigation facilities (like drip irrigation) and organic farming maybe introduced for better yields.
> Land pooling, cooperative farming and contract farming can also be helpful against small holdings' flaws.
> Land Acquisition law must provide enough compensation as well as social impact assessment while displacing the farmers. 'Make in India' scheme can be a viable initiative to absorb displaced farmers as labourers.
Hence, instead of politicizing the issue, providing farmers their basic right to live with dignity is imperative to protect the basis of Indian employment force.
> Small holdings: High initial investments for better productivity, low access to credit, lack of micro-irrigation facilities and poor storage facilities make small holdings unviable.
> Indebtness: Loans pending to private moneylenders makes the farmer fall into debt traps.
> Dependence on cash crops: Increased during green revolution, it continues to persist and exposes farmers to the vagarities of the market.
Way forward:
> Increased access to low-interest credit through financial inclusion schemes such as Jan Dhan Yojna.
> States must enact acts against private money lenders, and the Governor must protect the scheduled areas from them.
> Effective irrigation facilities (like drip irrigation) and organic farming maybe introduced for better yields.
> Land pooling, cooperative farming and contract farming can also be helpful against small holdings' flaws.
> Land Acquisition law must provide enough compensation as well as social impact assessment while displacing the farmers. 'Make in India' scheme can be a viable initiative to absorb displaced farmers as labourers.
Hence, instead of politicizing the issue, providing farmers their basic right to live with dignity is imperative to protect the basis of Indian employment force.
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