What a contrast between what one saw at a meeting of farmers in Erode on May 21 and what one read in newspapers in Chennai earlier! "Mettur Dam at over 100 feet in the month of June."

"Wonder whether the dam would release water for cultivation before the annual political war between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka." "Never in the last 25 years has water been released in June for cultivation." "The farmers will go wild and celebrate the arrival of water which is life line of agriculture" _ This is how from Chennai political leaders and the media have been seeing a golden year ahead for Tamil Nadu agriculture.

But the contrast, unbelievably, unfolded at a meeting of over 150 farmers representing different associations from Erode district. Farming in Erode is regarded as prosperous. One would have expected the atmosphere to be festive with news of Mettur water release. But as the farmers began to speak out it was stunningly different. They said, "Sir, our problem is that water is being released. This forces us to commence farming. If water is not released we would cite that as the reason for not commencing farming operations. But now we do not know what to do".

Why fear commencing cultivation of, say paddy, when there is abundant water? "Sir, that precisely is our problem. If we plant paddy, we are sure to end in loss. Our input cost is so high, fertiliser is so costly, the price for paddy is so low, we have to take loans."

But what about the government support price? "Sir, that is the price we are talking about. The price of a sovereign of gold and the price of a quintal of rice were the same in late 1960s. Today sir, the price of gold sovereign is six times the price for a quintal of rice!" That is their manner of expression. Government statistics show that while cost of living has risen by 100 per cent in the last decade, index of wholesale price of rice rose by just 68 per cent, wheat by 84 per cent, tea by 31 per cent, and cotton by 66 per cent.

They are right. Agricultural prices have not kept pace with inflation. "Sir, that is why we are worried that water is coming." But, why worry about water flowing? "Sir, we cannot live in our villages with self-respect if we do not cultivate when water flows. The village society will mock at us." With loss as certain as night follows the day they will have to cultivate to keep their flag flying in villages. Their honour in their little village society is their life. That is the reason farmers commit suicide when they cannot pay their debts back. But an industrialist, being wiser, will go for rehabilitation package.

Nor are these farmers so illiterate that they lose out in farming because they do not know the right farming methods. Many of those who spoke were educated in colleges, two were advocates. Then what about their wards? "Sir, all our sons have left the villages. They told us that they would not waste their life in loss-making agriculture". Where are they? Some qualified software and other professionals are abroad and most of them are now urbanites who economists regard as developed! They are urging their parents to sell off their lands and exit the villages. But the tenacity of the old ones to hold on to their traditions is keeping them where they are. "Sir you come and have a look at the villages; you will hardly see youths in the age group of 20-40. Only the old, the children and women roam around." They said and added: "No young farmer will get a girl to marry. Even a farmer will not marry his daughter or sister to another farmer. That is the respect which agriculture commands today".

But what about the debt relief measures announced recently? "Sir, our problems started only with debts. We used to borrow very little money till the late 1960s. The Government officials came to us in the late 1960s and began insisting that we take loans to buy and use chemical fertilisers to get better yield. This is how we got into debts. We got more yield yes, but sold it at lower prices, the result was more losses." They went on: "Sir, this debt relief will lead to more debts, more debt relief. Unless the agricultural product prices rise nothing will work. That of course will never happen as that will mean higher cost of living for the towns." Unstoppable, they continued on and on. Erode is not just an anecdote. It is an emerging model of Indian farming.

Decades back Lal Bahadur Shastri had raised the slogan "Jai Kisan" in their honour. Most young Indians today would not know that. He celebrated them as the warriors against hunger. These warriors who removed the hunger of India by farming at high cost are today afraid _ and even ashamed _ of doing farming. The nation has forgotten them, almost. Yet, the last generation of them is still holding, their sons having given it up. The situation is alarming. Will the nation wake up before it is too late? Will the government and elite who merely look at the BSE index also look at the index of agricultural prices and farmer suicides?

Courtesy: gurumurthy.net/indianexpress.html, June 27, 2006