TWO MORE FARMERS SUCCUMB TO SUICIDE IN WARDHA DISTRICT (11th October 2010, 2250 Hrs)

While Indians all over are busy celebrating Navratri in colourful attire and fanfare, farmers in Vidarbha are succumbing to suicide. How ironical life can be... on one side you see front pages of dailies showcasing young colourful girls dancing dandiya full of joy and happiness, a very small column space covers two more farmers’ suicide due to debt and crop failure due to excessive rains this year. Even Gods and Goddesses, who are worshipped so much in the land of the Indian sub-continent with so much devotion, have left the farmers of the nation to die with no hope in sight.... while in the last few years, farmers committed suicide because of drought in the region, this year’s excessive rains in many parts of Vidarbha are seeing the same phenomenon being repeated.

What happens after a farmer has committed suicide? A dead body is sent for post mortem by the Police and the offence is registered under Section 174 of Criminal Penal Code. Isn’t this the cruel joke being played on the dead person... who will prosecute the already dead farmer? Why there are no government bodies, which can help these farmers, who have no other options left but to end their lives. These farmers, who work so hard in hot sun and high temperatures and heavy rains to feed the nation and make the already rich more rich not only leave their families to struggle in life but also force them to live their lives forever in miseries. What kind of justice is this God? Why the government have closed their eyes like God to force the farmers towards death?

When a rich industrialist declares himself ‘bankrupt’ the law of the land don’t even force him to repay his debt and there is no power in the earth to demand for their money given on loan to the industrialist... but when a poor farmer is not able to pay his debt because of crop failure or natural calamities... there is no respite for him as bank officials demand for their loan money forcing him to the extreme to end his life... there is no law in our nation to protect the farmers, who give away their life to feed the nation life long... there are laws to protect tigers, animal slaughtering and what not... but there is no law that has been made to protect a farmer’s life...

Priceless! Exactly! That is what a farmer’s life should be according to the law of the nation! After all, unlike any other working class except the army soldiers, the farmers don’t even get any pension for their devoted service towards the nation. On ground realities, if we look, farmers are the most neglected community that is being exploited by everyone to fill in their coffers. Imagine if there are no farmers in the nation, from where will all the food grains come or else the cotton, the soyabean, the sugarcane, the pulses, the vegetables etc etc... so the government has to change its priority to protect the farmers’ community for a healthy national progress in all sphere of life. However, the reality is just the opposite... instead of providing farmers water for irrigation so they can continue farming all year long, the water is diverted for industrial growth and make the farmers bhagwan barose... if it rains, it is good and if it doesn’t rain then God save the farmers.

Two more farmers in Wardha district committed suicide in the last 48 hours due to debt and crop failure due to excessive rains in the region. When will the government take adequate and stern steps to stop suicide of farmers in the nation... when will the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh wake up from his sleep to save the farmers of the nation??? WHEN? WHEN? WHEN? I feel so-so helpless whenever I read of another farmer’s suicide... WHEN will the nation wake up to support the farmers? WHEN will we all realize it is the farmers who are feeding us life long by keeping their own families in miseries and hunger... WAKE UP! PLEASE WAKE UP is my sincere request to one and all before it is too late!!!