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Bhopal:
The condition of drought in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra state is
getting worse day by day as six more farmers committed suicides
allegedly due to crop failure and acute distress following huge
debt.
According to
Nagpur-based Kishor Tiwari, president of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti,
(VJAS), in this month of August more than 36 farmers in drought
prone Vidarbha region have committed suicides. It is a matter of
concern that now reports from new areas of paddy growing cases of
farm suicides have started to come, he added.
Tiwari said the
names of the recent victims are: 1. Vijay Manohar Bothe of
Pahapal village in Yavatmal district, 2. Vishwas Zingaraji
Nandane of Pimpari Purva village in Amaravati district, 3.
Ramesh Tulsiram Maraskhole of Pathargode village in Yavatmal
district, 4. Ramchandra Lahanuji Mungale of Bhisi Devidas
village in Chandrapur district, 5. Dilip Suresh of Ekadapur
of Wardha and 6. Arun Tukaram Dakhode of Yenikoni village in
Nagpur district.
He said earlier
around two million hectors of soybean sowing was damaged due to dry
spell. Now in last two days 3.2 million hectors of cotton crop have
started showing signs of withering and failure of monsoon coupled
with pest attack is destroying the standing crop in central India.
The economic impact of cotton failure in rain-fed areas will be huge
if there are no monsoon rains. Most parts of rural Vidarbha and
Marathwada have not received rains since 20th July. Hence, the panic
and more farm suicides are being reported, he pointed out.
As per recent
report from all over India, Tiwari revealed, drought has very badly
hit agrarian economy.
“We are demanding
visit of Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to Vidarbha region
to assess for himself the ground reality of serious situation to
stop spate of ongoing farm suicides which has re-started”, said Tiwari.
VJAS has asked the
government to provide free health care, food security, rural
employment, fodder to save dying cattle, drinking water to rural
masses and cattle on priority basis so that prevailing acute
distress can be minimized and farmers’ suicides can be abated,
Tiwari added.
Pervez Bari is a Bhopal based journalist. He can be contacted at
pervezbari@eth.net
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