Down to Earth

Give Indian farmers a chance

- GIRISH UDAPUDI VIA EMAIL

7KLV LV UHJDUGLQJ WKH HGLWRULDO k:H FDQ W DIIRUG WR ORVH IDUPHUVy -XQH I feel Indian agricultur­e should no longer be a playground, playing with the lives of kOLYLQJ PDFKLQHVy IDUPHUV NLOOLQJ WKHP VORZO\ EXW SDLQIXOO\

:H VKRXOG UHYLYH WKH FXOWLYDWLR­Q RI kRUSKDQ FURSVy WKDW DUH EHLQJ UHSODFHG E\ cash crops. Ironically, these crops, which many learned scientists cannot even LGHQWLI\ DUH EHLQJ UHYLYHG LQ SDUW E\ kLOOLWHUDW­Hy IDUPHUV 6XFK IDUPHUV QHHG WR EH encouraged and this can be interprete­d as patriotism of some sort.

:H VKRXOG DOVR DEROLVK WKH 3XEOLF 'LVWULEXWLR­Q 6\VWHP PDS 7KH ODWH SROLWLFLDQ DQG PLQLVWHU 5DIL $KPHG .LGZDL ZDQWHG WR GR VR EXW -DZDKDUODO 1HKUX FRXOG QRW act on it. Alternativ­es to PDS can, and should, be devised.

%\ ,QGLD V SRSXODWLRQ PD\ EH DURXQG WR ELOOLRQ ,I WKHUH LV D systematic policy, funds and marketing assurance, our farmers can feed not only our country, but others too.

I am an 84-year-old medical practition­er and farmer. Farm inputs have become expensive because of high labour cost, and are further increasing due to exploitati­on by land owners. Farm workers' output is disproport­ionate to the wages paid, especially during the harvest season. It is a myth that there is employment in the unorganise­d sector, namely, agricultur­e. The authoritie­s should conduct detailed visits in farmlands to study the farming mechanisms and

help farmers. The reason why farmers are forced to take loans is because the socalled subsidy for farm ponds, drip irrigation and crop loss insurance takes months, even years to reach. Merely making promises is not going to help the farmer.

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