Farmers' Suicides

Nagpur: With 3,146 distressed farmers ending their lives last year, Maharashtra has topped the list of farmland suicides in the country, an activist said here Friday.

Pesticides  are  to be  used for pests' elimination.   But thousands of farmers in our country continue to commit suicides consuming pesticides. This is happening in the advanced states  like Maharashtra. To put an end to this  tragic phase many steps are to be taken urgently.

• Run a very intensive, aggressive campaign to create an awareness among the farmers about the futility in this act.
• Strengthen the Co-operative Banks  with capital infusion and constant replenishment
• Ensure Crop Insurance for every crop sown and grown
• Provide free  education to all wards of farmers up to University education 
• Ban conversion of  farm lands into residential/commercial/industrial sites 
• Cease the properties of money lenders and ban lending of money and collecting interest by individuals
• Enact suitable law to enforce  the ban and strictly  implement the same.
• Sanction interest free  loans   for raising crops and purchase of tractors or fertilizers
• Buy every grain of the farmer's produce at the market rate or govt. fixed one whichever is higher at the time of sale of the produce
• Construct warehouses and freezers according to the requirement and allow farmers to store free of cost
• Supply seeds free of cost for all type of  crops
• Do not encourage sinking of bore wells but encourage traditional  lakes and ponds.
• Go for massive lake renovation and creation across all states and ensure every drop fallen goes to the tank
• Interlink all  major rivers but ensure no region gets reduced supply from their normal requirement
• King Asoka National Lakes Rejuvenation Project must come now to save our farmers from death traps
• In case of crop failures ensure the farmers are compensated adequately by the Insurance companies
• Help farmers market their products or buy every produce without fail
• Encourage farmers to rear cows, goats, fowls or any other that can supplement their income