Farmers’ Woes

Prafulla Kumar Mohanty

Almost fifty percent of India’s population comprises the farming community. We often take pride in speaking from public platforms that India lives in the villages and the farmers are our Annadata. During the seventy years of India’s Independent self-rule right from the first Primeminister Nehru to the present P.M. Modi the same superlative sobriquet is used for the farmers-Annadata. But the giver of the food is never happy. He is half -starved, loanladen and self-destructive.  Sounds ironical, doesn’t it?

Indian agriculture has been mostly rainfed. Appeasement of the rain gods, even after sending a Mars craft successfully in the first attempt, continues till date in several parts of the country. Joining the major rivers of the country for continuous availability of water for irrigation purposes has not yet started. The irrigation projects in most states are inadequate. Farmers take loans from moneylenders and banks to finance their efforts, which is natural, but often they fail to pay back the amount taken for crop failure. The vagaries of monsoon, pests, unseasonal rains, hailstorms and other natural - unnatural menaces play truant with the fate of the farmers rendering him helpless and miserable. If the rainfall is good and farmers launch dream ships in the air, another danger chokes their hopes-the anomaly of plenty. The simple law of demand and supply makes the product cheap and prices fall dashing all their hopes. Scenes of potato, tomato and other vegetables, wheat etc thrown on highways or into rivers are not rare in bumper crop years. Politicians especially in the opposition parties go hoarse in the Parliament shouting for the right MSP for farmer’s products and a few sops are declared. The MSP is raised by a small amount and government becomes the chief buyer. But there is no improvement in their lot.

This story is repeated year after year. Modernization of agriculture is not uniformly done. The farmer though is more aware today because of technology and scientific knowledge -soil testing, fertilizer quality, monsoon forecast- his investments never become gainful. Unable to repay the loans he puts an end to his own life. Farmer suicide is a blight on the people, society and government. The Annadata feeds others but his own family is unfed. His children never go to good schools; they prefer to be tea sellers, peons in offices or drivers than farmers following the parental footsteps.   

When the farmers commit suicide governments at the centre and state pay a sort of compensation ranging from 3 to 5 lakhs. At times popular governments write off the bank loans thereby jeopardizing the economy. Protest marches are taken out in multiple cities, slogans against the state and central governments are loud- speakered much to the annoyance of everybody. But no permanent solutions are found by any government. When the British ruled India there was no industrial growth as there was no agricultural prosperity. Gurucharan Das writes, “The industrial revolution did not occur because the Indian agriculture remained stagnant, and you cannot have an industrial revolution without an agricultural surplus…”

No point blaming the British. In independent India the agricultural growth is hovering around 3%only.To relieve the stress of the farmers Swaminathan, a great agricultural scientist, has suggested that the farmers be given 50% profit over their total investment. No government has done it. Narendra Modi in his election speeches promised the farmers to adopt Swaminathan Commission report, but going into the last year of Modi’s rule this assurance too has fallen flat.

A radical solution could be to release agriculture from protectionism of all kinds. Let them beg, borrow and invest money and repay on their own. Let there be no compassionate compensation for suicides. But let the farming community be free to sell their products in the open market on their own terms. Agriculture may be treated as an industry like the film industry. Let them be taxed on their incomes. Let there be no subsidies of any kind. The farmers however must create their own leadership in collection and distribution without an eye on political positions.  The market forces will determine the price of their products and they will function like other manufacturers of consumer products. The farmers should not become willing vote banks of any party- left right and centre. Let the farmer live with dignity and determine his own fate. Any takers?