On September 17, 2023 the Ambalappuzha village of Alappuzha district in Kerala woke up with the tragic news of Rajappan’s suicide. The 88-year-old paddy cultivator ended his life by consuming poison.
Rajappan’s case is not isolated case. Several like him have fallen victim to the red tapism plaguing the state. He was a role model peasant with two acres of paddy field and his son Prakash was having one acre of field. On April 28, the state-run Civil Supplies Corporation bought paddy from both of them. A credit note for Rs 1,02,045 was given to Rajappan and Rs 55,054 to his son. The government promised that they will pay the amount before Onam festival which is the national festival of Kerala. But the government paid only Rs 28,243 to Rajappan and Rs 15,163 to his son.
The amount was not enough to pay off debts. Moreover, he didn’t have money to go for the next cultivation. Harassed by debtors, he committed suicide. Farmers of paddy producing districts such as Palakkad, Thrissur and Alappuzha are facing similar fate. The insensitive state government is yet to pay farmers for the procurement.
The distress in the farming sector in Kerala was a topic of hot discussion during the Onam days. Noted film star Jayasoorya who participated in an agri-fest along with the state ministers highlighted the issue. The educated youths are abandoning agriculture. He cited the example of Krishnaprasad, his colleague, who turned to farming as an occupation. Krishnaprasad along with other farmers was leading a hunger strike on Onam day. This became a heated discussion in media and social media. For the last so many years, CPI, a constituent of the Left Front was handling the agriculture department and public distribution. And even CPM were indirectly attacking CPI on this.
But the ministers of CPI were trying to find fault with the central government. According to the Centre did not release fund for farmers. At last the central government came out with an explanation. The Kerala government didn’t submit the accounts and details. So that around Rs 650 crore was pending with the central government in spite of several reminders. State minister for External Affairs V Muralidharan exposed the Leftist lie. Under fire, the government had to send officials to Delhi to settle accounts with the centre.
In the meantime, the Kerala Economics and Statistics Department came out with a report that showed the tragic decline of agriculture production in Kerala. Paddy field declined by 3,16,585 acres and rice production by 1,41,407 tonnes. Rice production declined by 20%. Total agriculture production declined by 4-5.4%.
Kerala farmers are abandoning agriculture due to heavy input costs and labour costs. The youths, particularly educated ones, are choosing other sectors. They are moving out of Kerala. So many successful agriculturists in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and even Maharashtra are from Kerala.
Agricultural products are not getting good price in comparison to the cost incurred. Kerala buys its fruit and vegetables from neighbouring states. The agriculture sector in Kerala is heading for a bleak future.
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