Debts attributable to poor revenue, suicides, excessive curiosity loans — Punjab farmers don’t paint a rosy image

Punjab farmers, who’ve been on the helm of the agitation at Delhi borders in opposition to the Centre’s farm legal guidelines — which entered its fiftieth day Friday — have been referred to as a “pampered lot” and a “major beneficiary of the MSP regime”. It has been claimed that Punjab farmers’ revenue is highest among the many states as the acquisition of their wheat and paddy is the federal government’s duty at a hard and fast MSP. Based on latest research and surveys, farm specialists current an altogether completely different image in a dialogue with The Indian Express.
According to Professor Sukhpal Singh, principal economist, Punjab Agriculture University (PAU), Ludhiana, 89 per cent farmers in Punjab are below debt. “There is no doubt that the average farm size and income of Punjab’s farmers is higher than their counterparts in other states and our wheat and paddy are also commercial crops because of government purchase. But it is not sufficient as to meet the agriculture and non-agriculture needs of farmers of the state,” he mentioned.

“To be precise, there is Rs 1 lakh crore debt on Punjab’s farmers and if one goes by the total number of farm households, which is around 10.53 lakh in Punjab as per the 2015-16 agriculture census of the government, on an average, there is a Rs 10 lakh debt on every farm household in the state. While the average income of every farm household in Punjab is Rs 6 lakh, it should not be confused with the incomes of the small, marginal, semi-medium farmers, which is very low,” he additional mentioned, including that cotton crop had turned out unhealthy six years repeatedly from 1997 to 2003 in Punjab, attributable to which the farmers come below heavy debt each from banks and personal sector. That debt might by no means be paid off and it mounted additional.
“If Punjab’s farmers are so prosperous then why are they leaving farming? Twelve per cent farmers have left farming and the number of small and marginal farmers has come down from five lakh in 1991 to three lakh in 2001,” mentioned Prof Singh, including they’ve both migrated to city areas/abroad to develop into labourers or offered their lands.
He mentioned that “liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation policies led to privatisation and commercialisation of the service sector including education, health, transport, and other daily use goods which cannot be fulfilled with farm income”. There isn’t any main supply of different employment within the state the place on a mean six industrial items closed between 2007 and 2015 (18,700 industrial items closed in a span of 8 years), whereas to help small and marginal farmers, employment in different sectors for relations was a should.

Farm suicides
“Our door to door study on farm suicides by three Punjab universities spanning over 17 years, which concluded in 2018, revealed that 9,300 farmers and 7,300 farm labourers died by suicide in 17 years in Punjab out of which 88 per cent farm suicides occurred due to heavy debt while 77 per cent of them were the small and marginal farmers, who constitutes 35 per cent of the farming households in the state,” mentioned Prof Sukhpal, including that for mounting debt, banks are equally accountable, charging 13 per cent curiosity for a tractor mortgage which might be used for productive actions, however 4 per cent on vehicles. “Luxury items should be sold at the higher rate of interest but not farm implements,” he added.

Domestic wants
Another survey titled ‘Indebtedness among farmers and agricultural labourers in rural Punjab’, a subject survey carried out a few years in the past by professors of Punjabi University Patiala and sponsored by the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), New Delhi, revealed that attributable to lack of ability to satisfy their expenditure with their poor revenue, farmers have been spending round 30 per cent share of their whole debt on assembly their home wants, sustaining their households, repairing homes, on well being, schooling, and socio-religious functions.
The survey was carried out in varied villages of three completely different areas of the state together with south-west (Mansa district), central plains (Ludhiana) and Shivalik foothills (Hoshiarpur) areas wherein farm households within the class of marginal, small, semi-medium, medium and enormous had been included.
The research exhibits that 68 per cent farmers have incurred main debt for buy of farm inputs in three areas of the states. But home wants are the second main goal of debt for marginal farmers (lower than one hectare of land) is all of the areas and small farmers (upto two hectares) within the south-west area. The share of home wants, main repairs of households and socio-religious ceremonies is round 30 per cent of whole debt within the three areas of the state.
The survey revealed that small and marginal farmers are largely dependent for his or her loans on non-institutional sources, which prices a excessive price of curiosity and has a non-transparent system, as on a mean 45 per cent marginal farmers and 30 per cent small farmers are taking debt from such establishments in three areas.
“Private or non-institutional sources are not under the control of the government and charge the interest as per their own wish,” mentioned farmer union chief Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan of Bhartiya Kisan Union Ugrahan.

Prof Gian Singh, who led the research ‘Indebtedness among farmers and agricultural labourers in rural Punjab’ mentioned that the situation of small and marginal farmers and agricultural labourers is the worst due to fewer land holdings and no availability of required work hours, respectively.
Prof. Singh mentioned they want further employment to satisfy their fundamental seven necessities together with meals, shelter, well being schooling, social safety and so forth.
“Surveys are enough of an eye-opener for those who call Punjab’s farmers prosperous and pampered,” he mentioned, including that extreme financial and social misery, rising variety of suicides particularly amongst small, marginal and even semi-medium farmers, is the bitter actuality of the state.