Spurious seeds add to woes of farmers in TS

RANC member collecting details from wife of a deceased farmer   

The New Year has not brought about any change of fortune for the farmers in Adilabad district of Telangana. Four farmers including a woman farmer, have committed suicide in the past seven days.

Matters appear set to go from bad to worse, with the prevailing drought conditions suggesting that crops could fail even in Rabi, like they did in Kharif last year.

According to Rythu Athmahatyala Nivarana committee, as many as 101 farmers ended their lives in 2015, while 73 committed suicide in the six months of 2014 ( June 2 to December 31) in the Adilabad district.         

Repeated crop failure and inability to repay the loans taken from the banks and private money lenders are primary causes of the distressed farmers taking the extreme step.

This year, the first farmer to end his life was Pandiri Peddaposhanna, 55 of Borigoan village in Sarangapur mandal who consumed pesticide on Jannuary2 in the New Year.

Subsequently, Chedigiri Chandrabai,65, of Vaddadi village in Tamsi ended her life  on January 5, followed by Gone Ramdas,48, Masala (B) village in Bela mandal on January 6 and Donipelli Mallaiah ,55, of Gurija village of Gudihathnoor mandal on January7.

Peddaposhanna had one acre of land and had taken another five acres on lease to cultivate cotton. He incurred huge loss as crop failed. A similar fate befell Mallaiah, who owned eight acres and took another 10 acres on lease.

Rythu Athmahatyala Nivarana Committee, district convenor Sangepu Borranna, said that as many as 10 farmers committed suicide in December, 2015 while four members in the New Year till January7.

‘Farmers had incurred huge loss this time because of sowing spurious seeds in addition to the drought conditions. As many as 74 verities of spurious cotton seed were detected in the state, 12 of them found in Adilabad district’, he said.

Young farmers who taken up agriculture with passion these days have lost hope and committed suicides.

According to Agriculture experts, enormous use of pesticides and fertilizers and huge investments and spurious seeds weaken these young farmers in particular and farmers in general.

The soil loses fertility with the much use of fertilizers and pesticides. Farmers spraying pesticides and applying fertilizers to the crops indiscriminately by competing with one another in the rural areas feeling that they will get more yield but the soil become toxic.

The state government has issued GO: 194 extending Rs 6 lakh compensation to the family of each farmer who committed suicide. However, in most cases, the mandal level committee is rejecting the claim of and reports are not reaching the division level committee.

Farmer leaders want the state government to take into consideration the gram sabha and police report instead of three-man committee report to release compensation to the deceased farmer’s families.

There are allegations that even some of the local ruling party leaders are making efforts to project the farmer suicides differently with the opinion that their government will be blamed for the farmers’ suicides.