The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figure for farmer and agricultural labourer suicides in 2018 is 10,349. Although this number has shown progressive decline from 2016 (11,379) and 2017 (10,655), according to figures released recently, the numbers are still not very encouraging. Going by the data for 2018, it emerges that 7.7 per cent of the total of 1,34,516 suicides in the country were farmer suicides. That is a sizeable number. One other figure that has shown marginal rise in terms of suicide numbers is unemployment.
The figure has gone up from 1.9 per cent in 2017 to 2 per cent in 2018. It, too, is a worrying statistic, but coming back to the farmer suicide numbers, it must be noted though that several states, including Odisha, have reported zero farmer suicides. This absence of farm suicides is dubious given the fact that the media in states such as Odisha have been consistently reporting cases where farm suicides were suspected. The figure also seems specious as the farmer suicide numbers had more than doubled from 50 in 2015 to 121 in 2016.
The ADSI (provisional figures) for 2016 had shown that farmer suicide number in Odisha for the year under consideration had increased significantly even while the national figures fell marginally. From such a situation the apparent turnaround is dramatic to say the least. Going by such numbers it would be puerile to believe that the agricultural crisis that had loomed over the country is showing signs of respite. The crisis is only likely to have deepened given the downturn in different economic indicators being witnessed by the country. The country is also yet to emerge from the onion crisis that had emerged as a result of a fall in production owing to excessive rainfall. Climate related pressures are also mounting on the farming sector with each passing day. These pressures are bound to reflect in the fortunes of the small and marginal farmers of the country.
Also, with a rightist government in power it would only be on expected lines if a lot of agriculture related enterprise and agriculture itself gets increasingly corporatized. Big companies are already invested in corporatizing agriculture and linking them to supermarket chains they operate. There are also threats from the likes of PepsiCo subsidiary Lay’s that has banned the cultivation of patented potato seeds in the country by farmers other than those who have been contracted by the company. The fetters on small and marginal farmers are growing thicker along with rise in input costs. Against such a backdrop, the fudging of farm suicide figures, if it has been done, is an act that would have far reaching implications in the long term. The problems with agriculture cannot be addressed by ignoring facts. It is a fact that farmers are ending their lives owing to rising indebtedness that arises from changing lifestyles combined with rising costs of cultivation. The farming community needs greater support from the correct direction to see it emerge competitive and able to face modern day challenges. The government, needs to help the agriculture sector find solutions so that the nation collectively can rise. Until the crisis is averted, much handholding with sincerity will be required for sure.