Over 12,000 Maharashtra Farmers Committed Suicide In Last 3 Years Exposing State Failure To Tackle Crisis

India is going through a deep agrarian crisis and this was reinforced after state legislative was informed that more than 12,000 farmers have committed suicide in Maharashtra between 2015-2018.

Out of the total 12,021 farmer suicides during the three-year period, 6,888 cases were found to be eligible for government aid after scrutiny by district-level committees, Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Subhash Deshmukh told the House in a written reply.

Deshmukh said family members of 6,845 farmers have been given financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh each, so far.

This year, between January and March, 610 farmers have committed suicide out of which 192 cases were eligible for financial assistance, admitted the BJP-led Maharashtra government.

BCCL

The state has launched several welfare schemes, including a loan waiver. In the drought-hit Aurangabad region, 4,124 farmers have ended their lives in the last four years.

Government¡¯s admission throws light on the fact that despite all these measures, the state has failed to address agrarian crisis.

Farmers willing to give up farming

The Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), based in Delhi, found that given an option majority of farmers in the country would prefer to take up some other work.

BCCL

The study noted 70 per cent of respondents said their crops were destroyed because of unseasonal rains, drought, floods and pest attack.

Debt, crop failure, inability to repay debt resulting in pressure from debtors, inability to procure enough money for daughter¡¯s marriage or other religious activities, chronic severe illness, vices like alcohol addiction, gambling etc have been noted as top reasons for farmers¡¯ suicide in the country.