Farmer suicides: It’s black Diwali for families in Muktsar
MUKTSAR: Arnavjot Kaur, 5, and Hardev Singh, 3, will not burst crackers this Diwali. No, it’s not due to environmental concern, but there is no one left in the family to buy them crackers and sweets ever since their father committed suicide two months ago. Their grandfather, Balwinder Singh, too committed suicide a few years ago due to mounting farm debt.
Many families across the state are not going to celebrate the festival of lights this year as one or more members of their clan have committed suicide in the past seven months after the Captain Amarinder Singh gov- ernment came into power.
The Captain government, which came into power by promising a complete loan waiver, has failed to fulfill its promise, they allege. “Kahdi khushiya? Kahdi Diwali? Sada ta sab kuj lut gya” (Why should we feel happy? Why should we celebrate Diwali? We have lost everything), says Gurwinder Kaur, mother of Gurpreet who recently committed suicide. “There is no male member left in the family and we don’t know what to do for survival” says Simarjeet Kaur, Gurpreet’s widow.
Family of Jaskaran Singh, who committed suicide in July, faces a similar predicament. Instead of indulging in Diwali celebrations, his widow Amandeep Kaur and mother Sarbjeet Kaur are worried about the future of his two-year-old son, Gurfateh.
Pooran Singh, a farmer, says: “Now, farmers buy pesticides not to spray on their crops but to commit suicide. Despite tall claims by the Captain government to bailout farmers, they continue to commit suicide.”
According to a survey conducted by three universities in the state a total of 825 farmers committed suicide in Muktsar from 2000 to 2016, the highest in the state.
Baj Singh, a marginal farmer said: “Farmland is waterlogged in Muktsar and is not suitable for cultivation, which is a major cause of farmer suicides.”
Harwinder Singh, uncle of deceased Gurpreet said tough Lakhewali police booked moneylender Kewal Krishan in suicide case, but he has not been arrested.
EXTRAVAGANT LIFESTYLE A REASON FOR SUICIDES: PAU
However, PAU experts are of the opinion that lavish lifestyle of the farmers is also responsible for the rising debt and suicides. Farmers spend a lot of money on marriages and “bhog” ceremonies which increases their expenses. “Farmers should cut their coat according to their clothes,” said a senior economist of the PAU.