Farmer suicides in Vidharbha have been discussed by politicians, academics, non-governmental organisations (NGO) and sector experts for more than 20 years, while the central and state governments have provided relief packages that have been unable to solve the larger issues.
Even during rallies in the Vidarbha region for the Lok Sabha election, politicians refrained from talking about farmer suicides. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who promised to accelerate development and usher in a new era of progress while outlining his vision for Vidarbha, Maharashtra and the nation at his first rally, in Ramtek on April 14, did not mention the suicides.
But with the date for the Maharashtra Assembly elections nearing, hardly any mention is seen in the political debates. With the parties betting their way on the top step, farmers in Nashik and Amravati today are hoping someone would give their grievances and suggestions an ear.
Reporter: Jinit Parmar
Camera: Suresh K Pandey
Script: Divya
Editor: Ehraz Zaman
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Even during rallies in the Vidarbha region for the Lok Sabha election, politicians refrained from talking about farmer suicides. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who promised to accelerate development and usher in a new era of progress while outlining his vision for Vidarbha, Maharashtra and the nation at his first rally, in Ramtek on April 14, did not mention the suicides.
But with the date for the Maharashtra Assembly elections nearing, hardly any mention is seen in the political debates. With the parties betting their way on the top step, farmers in Nashik and Amravati today are hoping someone would give their grievances and suggestions an ear.
Reporter: Jinit Parmar
Camera: Suresh K Pandey
Script: Divya
Editor: Ehraz Zaman
Follow us:
Website: https://www.outlookindia.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Outlookindia
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outlookindia/
X: https://twitter.com/Outlookindia
Whatsapp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaNrF3v0AgWLA6OnJH0R
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@OutlookMagazine
Dailymotion: https://www.dailymotion.com/outlookindia
#Mahahrashtra #Farmers #MaharashtraElections #AssemblyElections
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NewsTranscript
00:00I work hard every year, I farm every year, but I don't have enough money to pay off my father's loan.
00:06I haven't paid it off, but I have made a separate loan.
00:10He has never seen a loan, he doesn't have money, he doesn't have a loan, nothing.
00:16The crop didn't ripen at all, so he committed suicide because of the loan.
00:30In Nashik, the main crop is of onions, so we have been here since November, we haven't
00:57planted onions.
00:58We used to plant onions early last year, but because of the rain, it used to rot, the
01:05more we planted, the more we had to harvest.
01:08And now there are crops, but in our village, there are 1,500-2,000 farmers, but none of
01:17them have onions.
01:18So what is the use of this crop?
01:21And secondly, if everyone gets onions, then the price will fall below Rs. 1,000, Rs. 600,
01:28Rs. 700, Rs. 800, Rs. 900, and it will stay like this for many days.
01:32In August and September, it rained so much that the crops got spoilt in the rain, and
01:42the crop was not able to grow.
01:53In one acre, we have spent more than Rs. 1,00,000.
01:58It has become difficult to get even Rs. 10,000 in this season.
02:12It's been 22 years since my father passed away.
02:17I haven't been able to repay my father's loan yet.
02:21I work hard every year, I farm every year, but I don't have enough money to repay my
02:27father's loan.
02:28I haven't repaid it, but I have made a separate loan.
02:32I have repaid the loan.
02:42My father-in-law passed away in 2022.
02:46But he had a loan, and because of the loan, his health deteriorated a bit.
02:52And during that time, because of his health, he started itching a bit.
02:58We weren't even at home.
03:00We went to the hospital.
03:02After coming from there, my mother-in-law told me that my father didn't come home.
03:07When he saw me in the fields, he hanged himself.
03:12My name is Rao Srikrishnan Mangale.
03:15This is my younger brother, Ashish Srikrishnan Mangale.
03:21He died in 2021.
03:24He committed suicide.
03:27Because of the lockdown, I used to work in a company.
03:31I had a lot of loans.
03:33The company was also closed.
03:35I didn't go to work.
03:37I still have a loan of Rs. 3 lakhs.
03:40Because of the loan, my father passed away.
03:43He committed suicide in this very room.
03:46When the old woman went to see why the door was closed,
03:49he saw a message from the window from the chair.
03:52When he put his hands on the chair, the old woman fell down.
03:56I was sitting outside.
03:58He had a loan from the farm.
04:01He didn't have any other tension.
04:03He thought that if he said Rs. 16,000, he would get Rs. 16 lakhs.
04:08He had never seen a loan.
04:11He had no money, no loan, nothing.
04:14He didn't know how to calculate.
04:17That's why he committed suicide because of the loan.
04:21The farmers who take out the onions from Rabi,
04:24when the rainy season starts in June,
04:27they don't have the facilities to store it.
04:30So they have to sell it at any price.
04:33Because if it goes bad because of the rain,
04:36they won't get anything.
04:38For that, the government should make infrastructure storage
04:42so that they can store the onions.
04:46For that, the government should make infrastructure storage
04:50so that the farmers can store their goods there.
04:54And after storing the goods,
04:56how much profit will they get in the future?
05:01The rent of the infrastructure should be such
05:05that they get the profit.
05:08Otherwise, the more profit they get, the more they go into the rent.
05:12It shouldn't be like that.
05:14If the government suddenly stops exporting and importing,
05:20then it will affect the farmers.
05:23If they tell the farmers that they are going to start or stop exporting
05:28in 15-20 days,
05:30then the farmers can reduce their profit
05:34by making progress in their storage.
05:41The government and the farmers can get a lot of profit.
05:46What we want from the government is
05:50that if the price is Rs 5,000-6,000,
05:54but everyone doesn't have onions,
05:56and when everyone gets onions,
05:58the price will not be the same,
06:00then the government should stabilize the market rate
06:04so that everyone can get a good price.
06:07I don't think it's right for someone to be hungry
06:10and someone to become rich.
06:12So, what we want from the government is
06:15that every farmer should get at least
06:20two meals a day,
06:26live in a good house,
06:28educate their children well,
06:31and not have debts.
06:37For more UN videos visit www.un.org