MODERN AGRICULTURE (FARMING - FARMER)

INDIA AND ITS AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY IN TIMES OF

GLOBALIZATION

INDIA HAS MORE OF TRADITIONAL,

(SMALL) COMPARED WITH MODERN.

HOW CAN WE OVERCOME

PROBLEMS OF FARMING / FARMERS

WITHOUT CHANGING LAWS?

ARE PROBLEMS OF FARMING AND

FARMERS DIFFERENT?

What Is Agriculture?

Agriculture, also called farming or husbandry, is the cultivation of animals,

plants(crops), fungi, and other life forms for food, fiber,

biofuel and other products used to sustain human life.

INDIAN AGRICULTURE

• In India, most of the farmers are doing farming

because it is their ancestral occupation.

• 28 per cent of the farmers / farm laborers were

found to be non-literate.

• 14 per cent have passed matric (Class X), and

only 6 per cent entered for a college degree.

Introduction – All humans depend on agriculture for food

– Urban-industrial societies depend on the base of food surplus generated by farmers and herders

– Without agriculture there could be no civilized life.

ABOUT INDIAN AG/C

• Indian agriculture began long ago, rain fed and

irrigated. Presently, 86 per cent of the farmers or

their family owns land (no large farms, mostly).

• Double monsoon leads two harvest in a year.

• The Grow More Food Campaign (1940s) and the

Integrated Production Program (1950s) focused on

food and cash crops supply respectively.

• After the 1960s Green revolution, with inputs of

high yield seeds, irrigation and chemical fertilizer,

agriculture production rose.

• Export increased at 10% in 1990s.

Introduction

• Agriculture—A primary, principal enterprise. Today

remains the most important economic activity in the

world

– Employs 45 percent of the working population

– In some parts of Asia and Africa, over 80 percent

of labor force is engaged in agriculture

What is Modern Agriculture?

Modern agriculture is a term used to describe the wide type of production practices employed by American farmers. It makes use of hybrid seeds of selected variety of a single

crop, technologically advanced equipment and lots of

energy subsidies in the form of irrigation water,

fertilizers and pesticides.

Modern Agriculture • More than 90% of farmers today work using the most innovative practices

and growing techniques to produce enough food, fuel

• and fiber for a growing world, while minimizing their

• environmental footprint at the same time.

• The term ―modern agriculture‖ depicts their

• commitment to innovation, stewardship and meeting

• the global food challenge all at once – there is nothing conventional about that

Traditional Agriculture

Difference between the categories is the way farmers see

themselves and their roles. Traditional farmers (small

landholder), say that they seek to work effectively with

resources at hand. That is, they use the land, rainfall,

seeds, tillage methods and power sources they have to

produce what nature offers. Conventional processes are

used to till the land, select and plant seeds, protect plants

from competing plants and animals and gather the harvest.

Surpluses are marketed through nearby outlets. Such

producers frequently report only limited capacity to change

these processes; seek to avoid change.

Traditional Agriculture

Indian Agriculture- Some Facts

• India ranks second worldwide in farm output

• Total Geographical Area - 328 million hectares

• Net Area sown - 142 million hectares

• Gross Cropped Area – 190.8 million hectares

• Major Crop Production

• Rice 94.1 million tones

• Wheat 74.8 million tones

• Coarse Cereals 36.1 million tones

• Pulses 219.3 million tones

• Oilseeds 340.3 million tones

• Food Grains 27.2 million tones

Why Modern Agriculture is Important?

• By 2050, the world’s population is expected to grow to

nearly nine billion – the equivalent of two more China’s –

while the ratio of arable land to population continues to

decrease.

• The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization

predicts that global food production will double by 2050, and

70 percent of the world’s additional food needs can be

produced only by adapting new agricultural technologies.

• In view of all these challenges, modern agriculture enables

farmers to utilize new innovations, research and scientific

advancements to produce safe, sustainable and affordable

food

Why Modern Agriculture is Important?

• The significant hunger and malnutrition that persist in many parts of the world would have been far worse had agricultural systems not grown and developed as they did .

• More people the world over eat more and better because of modern agriculture. Increased production continues to enable steadily improving diets, reflecting increased availability of all foods, dietary diversity and access to high-protein food products .

Types of Agriculture

• Types:

– Peasant/Subsistence

– Commercial

• Subsistence farming, or subsistence agriculture, is a mode of agriculture in which a plot of land produces only enough food to feed the family or small community working it.

• SF – the provision of food by farmers only for their own family or the local community without any surplus.

Types of Agriculture

• Types: (i) Peasant / Subsistence and (ii) Commercial

• Subsistence farming, or subsistence agriculture,

is a mode of agriculture in which a plot of land

produces only enough food to feed the family or

small community working it.

• Commercial farming –

The production of crops for sale, crops intended for

widespread distribution to wholesalers or retail

outlets

• Commercial farming - The production of crops for sale, crops intended for widespread distribution to wholesalers or retail outlets (e.g. supermarkets), and any non-food crops such as cotton and tobacco.

• Includes livestock production and livestock grazing. Commercial agriculture does not include crops grown for household consumption (e.g backyard garden or from a vegetable garden or a few fruit trees.)

• Occurs on a large, profit making scale. These farmers seek to maximize yields per hectare.

Major contrasts between “modern” and “smallholder” rice farming

• Modern Farming:

• Large / intermediate scale

• Commercial

• Mechanised

• External inputs (seeds, ag.chemicals)

• Capital intensive

• Smallholder farming:

• Small – variable scale

• Self sufficiency – surplus

• Mainly manual

• Local inputs (seeds, manure, compost, etc.)

• Labour intensive

Modern Agricultural Revolutions Technology allows much greater production

(surplus) with less human labor, but has high social and environmental costs.

Metal plows, Reapers, Cotton Gin Tractors (Internal Combustion Engine) Combines Chemical Pesticides/Fertilizers Hybrid crops The Green Revolution Genetically modified crops

Agribusiness: The industrialization of agriculture

Modern commercial farming is very dependent on inputs

of chemical fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides.

Oil is required to make fertilizer and pesticides.

It takes 10 calories of energy to create 1 calorie of food

in modern agriculture.

Small farmer can’t buy needed equipment and supplies.

Fewer than 2% of U.S. population works in agriculture

Shifting Cultivation

Vegetation “slashed” and then burned. Soil remains fertile for 2-3 years. Then people move on.

where: tropical rainforests. Amazon, Central and West Africa, Southeast Asia

Crops: upland rice (S.E. Asia), maize and manioc (S. America), millet and sorghum (Africa)

Declining at hands of ranching and logging.

Pastoral Nomadism The breeding and herding of

domesticated animals for subsistence.

where: arid and semi-arid areas of N. Africa, Middle East, Central Asia

animals: Camel, Goats, Sheep, Cattle

transhumance: seasonal migrations from highlands to lowlands

Most nomads are being pressured into sedentary life as land is used for agriculture or mining.

Bedouin Shepherd

Somali Nomad and Tent

Classifying Agricultural Regions (worldwide)

Commercial Agriculture

• Mixed Crop and Livestock Farming

• Dairy Farming

• Grain Farming

• Livestock Ranching

• Mediterranean Agriculture

• Truck Farming

North Dakota Potato and Wheat Fields

Mixed Crop and Livestock Farming

Mixed Crop and Livestock Farming

Where: Ohio to Dakotas, centered on Iowa; much of Europe from France to Russia

crops: corn (most common), soybeans

In U.S. 80% of product fed to pigs and cattle

Highly inefficient use of natural resources

Pounds of grain to make 1 lb. beef: 10

Gallons of water to make 1 1b wheat: 25

Gallons of water to make 1 1b. beef: 2500

Dairy Farming Where: near urban areas in United States,

Southeast Canada, Europe

Locational Theory: butter and cheese more common than milk with increasing distance from cities and in West.

milkshed: historically defined by spoilage threat; refrigerated trucks changed this.

Dairy Farm, Wisconsin

Mediterranean Agriculture Where: areas surrounding the Mediterranean,

California, Oregon, Chile, South Africa, Australia

Climate has summer dry season. Landscape is mountainous.

• crops: olives, grapes, nuts, fruits and vegetables; winter wheat

• California: high quality land is being lost to suburbanization; initially offset by irrigation

Where: U.S. Southeast, New England, near cities around the world

• crops: high profit vegetables and fruits demanded by wealthy urban populations: apples, asparagus, cherries, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.

• mechanization: such truck farming is highly mechanized and labor costs are further reduced by the use of cheap immigrant (and illegal) labor.

• distribution: situated near urban markets.

Truck Farming: Commercial Gardening and Fruit Farming

Green House

A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse) is a building in which plants are grown with perfect climatic conditions.

Used to overcome shortcomings in the growing qualities of a piece of land, such as a short growing season or poor light levels, and they can thereby improve food production in marginal environments.

Paddy rice farming

• Draft animals—water buffalo—used more by farmers in India

• Japanese have mechanized paddy rice farming

• Green Revolution

– Achieved by introducing hybrid rice during the last half of the twentieth century

– Chemical fertilizers introduced

– Heightened productivity achieved

Paddy rice farming

• Most paddy rice farms outside Communist area of Asia are tiny

– Three acre plot is considered adequate to support a farm family

– Irrigated rice provides a large output of food per unit of land

– Small patches must be intensively tilled to harvest enough food

– Small rice sprouts carefully transplanted by hand from seed beds to paddy

– Double-cropping—harvest same parcel of land two or three times each year

– Apply large amounts of organic fertilizer

– Per-acre yields exceed those of American agriculture

Indian Agriculture- Some Facts

• Contributes to 14% of GDP

• Provides food to more than 1Billion people

• Sustains 65% of the population : helps alleviate poverty

• Produces 51 major Crops

• Provides Raw Material to Industries

• Contributes to 1/6th of the export earnings

Advantages

The last 150 years has witnessed a huge shift in the U.S.’s connection with agriculture.

In 1900, 70 to 80 percent of Americans made their living from the land. In 2012, that number has went down to less than 2 percent.

We now import many of our fruits and vegetables from foreign borders.

New technology like pesticides and mechanical farm equipments make it possible to grow large amounts of food with relatively few human hands.

Advantages

• During the latter half of the twentieth century, what is

known today as modern agriculture was very successful

in meeting a growing demand for food by the world's

population.

• Yields of primary crops such as rice and wheat increased

dramatically, the price of food declined, the rate of

increase in crop yields generally kept pace with

population growth and the number of malnourished

people was reduced slightly

Disadvantages

Removal of buffers to make large fields for maximum efficiency leading to lower food costs and greater food availability to the poor.

It limits the natural habitat of some wild creatures and can lead to soil erosion.

Disadvantages

Use of fertilizers can alter the biology of rivers and

lakes.

Some environmentalists attribute the hypoxic zone

in the Gulf of Mexico as being encouraged by

nitrogen fertilization of the algae bloom.

India, One of the 12 Bio-diversity centers in

the world with over 46,000 species of plants

and 86,000 species of animals recorded.

However, it has been reported that the annual

earnings of the majority of the agriculture

labour in India are so low that they cannot

meet even their minimum consumption needs.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SUBSISTENCE & COMMERCIAL FARMERS

TRADITIONAL/SUBSISTENCE MODERN/COMMERCIAL

Proportion of output sold off the farm Low High

Destination of foods Local direct consumption & some processed locally

High proportion processed & to food manufacturers

Origin of inputs i. Power ii. Plant nutrients iii. Pest control i. Weed control i. Implements & tools ii. Seed i. Livestock feeds

Draught animals Legumes, ash, bones, manure Crop rotations, intercropping Rotations, hoeing, use of plough Hoe, plough, sickle, scythe From own harvest Grass & fodder crops grown on farm/common land

Petroleum, electricity Chemical fertilisers Insecticides, fungicides, break crops Herbicides Machinery, often self-propelled combine harvesters Purchased from seed merchants Purchased from compound feed mixers

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SUBSISTENCE & COMMERCIAL FARMERS

TRADITIONAL/SUBSISTENCE

MODERN/COMMERCIAL

Economic aims i. Prime aim to provide family food ii. Land & labour main inputs, few

capital inputs iii. Diversity of crops grown iv. Aims at maximising gross output &

yield per acre v. Prime aim avoidance of risk;

reluctant to innovate

Profit maximisation Capital & land major inputs; labour a declining input Specialised production Aims at maximising output per head & minimising production costs Innovation

HOW TO OVER COME………

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

• The term sustainable agriculture means an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term: – satisfy human food and fiber needs;

– enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends;

– make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls;

– sustain the economic viability of farm operations; and

– enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.

Modern Agriculture Supposed to be Sustainable Agriculture

Modern agricultural practices enable farmers to meet ALL three goals of sustainability: conserve and protect natural resources;

meet the food and fuel needs of a growing population; and be financially viable for both growers and consumers.

Indian Agriculture Scenario

STRENGTHS

• Indian agriculture is famous for its rich bio-diversity

• Almost 60% of Indian land comprises of agricultural land

• Climate is suitable for agriculture

• Strong and well dispersed research and extension system

Indian Agriculture Scenario

• Average yield in India is just 30% to 50% of the highest average yield in the world

• Agriculture in India is not technically developed

• Irrigation facilities are inadequate, which results in farmers still being dependent on rainfall

• Illiteracy and socio-economic backwardness results in low productivity in India

• Share of agriculture in GDP has declined in past few years

WEAKNESS

Indian Agriculture Scenario

• Expand operations to include planting and harvesting

• Expanding international level markets

• Partner with firm that only plants and harvests crops

• Technological development in agriculture

• Agro-based Industry

• Agricultural education

OPPORTUNITIES

Indian Agriculture Scenario

• Unsustainable Resource Use

• Unsustainable Regional Development

• Change in the government policies

• Production of inferior quality of crops

• Repetitive cultivation of two staple crops

• Low productivity

THREATS

Mile Stones in Agricultural Development

• Green Revolution (1968)

• Ever-Green Revolution (1996)

• Blue Revolution (water, fish)

• White Revolution (Milk)

• Yellow Revolution (flower, edible)

• Bio-Technology Revolution

• ICT Revolution

Green Revolution

• The introduction of high-yielding varieties of

seeds and the increased use of fertilizers and

irrigation are known as Green Revolution

• It provided the increase in production needed

to make India self-sufficient in food grains

• The production of wheat has produced the best

results in fuelling self-sufficiency of India.

NABARD

NABARD is set up as an apex Development Bank with a

mandate for facilitating credit flow for promotion and

development of agriculture

NABARD is entrusted with :-

• Providing refinance to lending institutions in rural areas

• Promoting institutional development

• Evaluating, monitoring and inspecting the client banks

SUSTAINABLE TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURAL

PRACTICES USED IN THE CARIBBEAN

• Intercropping & polyculture: symbiotic relations

‘tween plants (shade, rooting systems), plant

diversity encourages natural biological control of

insect pests, provides year round food supply.

• Crop rotation w/ legumes: helps retain soil fertility

& year round food supply, (rotations involve red

peas, cowpeas, string beans etc)

• Spatial organisation of crops in fields: strip cropping, grass barriers, contour planting – all contribute to soil conservation, planting trees to act as wind breaks

• Fallowing: helps restore soil fertility if sufficient time elapses, helps maintain vegetative cover to reduce erosion.

• Mulching: helps reduce evapotranspiration & soil loss from wind erosion, adds nutrients to soil, minimises the impact of splash erosion.

• Ramming, fly penning: integrates crops & livestock into household production, reduces potential erosion by trampling, animal faeces manures the land.

• Kitchen gardens & food forests: traditional types of agroforestry.

• Silvo-pasture: combining food trees w/ pasture e.g. coconuts & cattle.

SOME INTERESTING

FACTS……..

THE FARMERS’ SUCIDE AND NAXALISM

• In the same village, with similar land condition, with same crop, one farmer makes profits,

• The other commits suicide

• Not all farmers commit suicide

• The young farmers are educated

• They take other means and wed Naxalism

• Naxalism not a new movement but has taken new roots in many parts of the country.

• In 2003 – 55 districts, 2004 – 150 districts, 2006 – 170 district – 1/3 of the country covered.

• Young persons prefer brutalism rather than committing suicide even if that has risk to their life.

• Naxalism is a major challenge to democratic system.

• Problem not only of agriculture but is a time bomb clicking which can damage the basic fabric of our constitution

CONCLUSION:

• Over all economy growing – but Agriculture left behind. Agri occupies 60% of total working population disparities between rural and urban growing

• With Agri sector some are growing and others left behind.

THE FARMERS’ SUCIDE AND NAXALISM

• In the same village, with similar land condition, with same crop, one farmer makes profits,

• The other commits suicide

• Not all farmers commit suicide

• The young farmers are educated

• They take other means and wed Naxalism

• Naxalism not a new movement but has taken new roots in many parts of the country.

• In 2003 – 55 districts, 2004 – 150 districts, 2006 – 170 district – 1/3 of the country covered.

• Young persons prefer brutalism rather than committing suicide even if that has risk to their life.

• Naxalism is a major challenge to democratic system.

• Problem not only of agriculture but is a time bomb clicking which can damage the basic fabric of our constitution

CONCLUSION:

• Over all economy growing – but Agriculture left behind. Agri occupies 60% of total working population disparities between rural and urban growing

• With Agri sector some are growing and others left behind.

THE PAST EXPERIENCE

• Past experience of early 70s

• Green revolution brought fruits to farmers, but poor small and marginal farmers did not benefit.

• There were riots in rural areas of our country • The Government of India introduced special programme for assistance of small and

marginal farmers – SFDA programme.(1975-80) • This was followed by Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP). (1980)

National Extension Programme also strengthened. • Focus on individual poor family, particularly farmers and artisans. VLW responsible

for providing technical assistance to poor farmers. • Special subsidy provided to obtain productive assets and inputs with back up bank

credit. The programme has great success –poverty decline – small and marginal farmers benefited.

• But there were left out more than 20% on average • In some areas this proportion is more. • The left-out of development process needed continuous attention.

THE PAST EXPERIENCE

• Past experience of early 70s

• Green revolution brought fruits to farmers, but poor

small and marginal farmers did not benefit.

• There were riots in rural areas of our country

• The Government of India introduced special programme

for assistance of small and marginal farmers – SFDA

programme.(1975-80)

• This was followed by Integrated Rural Development

Programme (IRDP). (1980) National Extension

Programme also strengthened.

Focus on individual poor family, particularly

farmers and artisans. VLW responsible for

providing technical assistance to poor farmers.

Special subsidy provided to obtain productive

assets and inputs with back up bank credit. The

programme has great success –poverty decline –

small and marginal farmers benefited.

But there were left out more than 20% on average,

In some areas this proportion is more.

The left-out of development process needed

continuous attention.

THE LEFT OUT OF DEVELOPMENT

PROCESS

• In 90s, focus of IRDP programme shifted Focus changed to non-farm activities It obtained new banner of SgSy & SgRy Poor farmers no longer received special individual attention. Programme moved to non farm activities, Self Help Groups The farmers left out of development process, not paid attention and

continued to remain poor. This is a very large segment NSSO report on farmers indicated high debt ratio Andhra Pradesh - 82% Tamil Nadu - 72% Punjab - 65% Kerala - 64% Karnataka - 61% Gujarat - 51% The VLWs and Extension team did not bother about poor farmers. Focus shifted to farmers who can obtain assistance on their own.

THE LEFT OUT OF DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

• In 90s, focus of IRDP programme shifted

Focus changed to non-farm activities

It obtained new banner of SgSy & SgRy

Poor farmers no longer received special individual attention.

Programme moved to non farm activities, Self Help Groups

The farmers left out of development process, not paid

attention and continued to remain poor.

This is a very large segment

THE LEFT OUT OF DEVELOPMENT PROCESS NSSO report on farmers indicated high debt ratio Andhra Pradesh - 82% Tamil Nadu - 72% Punjab - 65% Kerala - 64% Karnataka - 61%

Gujarat - 51%

The VLWs and Extension team did not bother about poor farmers.

Focus shifted to farmers who can obtain assistance on their own.

FARMERS FINDINGS BY NSS-59TH ROUND PUBLISHED IN JULY 2005

All India Level Awareness of technical and institutional development 18% Farmers liking farming 60% Seed replacement 30% Using testing Labs for seeds, fertilizer etc 2% Accessing knowledge about technology 40% From Extension Administration 21% Input dealers 23%

FARMERS FINDINGS BY NSS-59TH ROUND PUBLISHED IN JULY 2005

All India Level

Awareness technical institutional development 18% Farmers liking farming 60% Seed replacement 30% Using testing Labs for seeds, fertilizer etc 2% Accessing knowledge about technology 40% From Extension Administration 21% Input dealers 23%

Extension Administration did not bother about poor farmers Lack of control on quality seeds and inputs and basic

guidance for selection of crop to be grown in rain fed areas based on soil health.

There can be many other reasons like mortgage of land by farmers to private money lenders/local dealers and so on and so forth. Left out poor farmers don’t have access to new technology and

information

Poor farmers started copying the wealthy farmers who had water resource and new technology, and failed.

Result – farmers suicide

SOME CASE STUDY…….

An upside to slash-and-burn agriculture:

According to Kricher, a study in Costa Rica demonstrated that slash and burn does not, in the short run, degrade the soil. Researcher cut, mulched, and burned a site that contained patches of eight- to nine-year-old forest and seventy-year-old forest. Before the burn there were approximately 8,000 seeds per square meter of soil, representing 67 species. After the burn the figure dropped to 3,000 seeds/square meter, representing 37 species. Mycorrhizal fungi survived the burn, and large quantities of nutrients were released to the soil following burning. The remaining seeds sprouted, and vegetation regrew vigorously on the site

THE GUJARAT EXPERIENCE - III

Gujarat provides a replicable experience It is against this background that experiences of Gujarat of last four years

need to be seen. Gujarat has achieved sustainable agricultural growth at an average of 11%

per annum in recent years.(2001-05) Gujarat, despite constraints of arid and semi arid agro climatic regions and

uncertain monsoons, has become number one state in the country in agriculture sector.

Gujarat does not have any suicide by farmers on account of crop failure. It does not have Naxalite areas. Initial efforts to spread it in district like Dangs have failed.

It is important to realize that prior to year 2000, Gujarat’s agriculture had growth but it was slow. It had a number of years with negative growth. After 2000, the situation changed. Agriculture became stable and picked up momentum.

Farmer suicides

A considerable number of farmers has

committed suicides in the second half of the

1990s, particularly in Karnataka, Andhra

Pradesh and Punjab.

• The spate of suicides by farmers in

Karnataka is still continuing.

Farmers’ leader Prof. M. D. Nanjundaswamy

blames

free imports,

falling prices and

lack of social security

for farmers for this situation (Farmer suicides).

He also believes that the compensation amount

of Rs. one lakh for farmers committing suicide

must be cancelled because it acts as an

incentive

The burden of indebtedness in rural India is

great, and it falls mainly on the households of

rural working people.

The credit market is highly fragmented and

regressive.

Moneylenders attend the most urgent-felt needs

like consumption, medical aid, emergency

situations, and daughter’s marriage

Study has shown that following are some of the

reasons for the increasing suicides among

farmers:

(i) Failure of institutional credits for small and

marginal farmers.

(ii) Withdrawal of government intervention from

safety nets such as fair price shops (FPS), and the

exclusion of poor and indebted from the food

distribution system. Continued…

…reasons for suicides…

• (iii) Increasing cost of agriculture inputs like

seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, etc.

• (iv) Reduced price of agriculture produces.

• (v) Increasing dependence of small farmers on

moneylenders, at rates of interest from 24 to 60

per cent per annum, sometimes even more.

• (vi) Cumulative crop loss.

The Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Market

Intervention Scheme (MIS) are designed to alleviate the

agency of the farmer. However, the process of

administering the MSP and MIS is at market prices. A

study carried out by Karnataka government shows a

number of lacunae in the MSP and MIS. The study

noted that the overhead charges at the procurement

centre are so high that the farmers end up in selling well

below the prescribed MSP.

During 1989-99, the population of the country

increased by 21.5 per cent, while the reported suicides

increased by 32.5 per cent as per the data from

National Crime Records Bureau for the same period,

clearly showing higher growth in suicide rates in the

country.

The incidence of suicides increased from

40,000 in the year 1967 to 110,000 in the year 1999

recording an increase by 175 per cent.

Karnataka had no history of farmers committing

suicide when crops or market failed, although there

were agitations of farmers in the past. The first

incidence of farmers’ suicide, which attracted

considerable attention of media and public, was

reported on 12 December 1997 when Mr. Shivaraj

Mainalle of Siddeshwar village in Bidar district

committed suicide. A few studies were available on

this first phase of suicides in Karnataka.

Within two decades suicide rate in India has

increased from 40 to 115 per lakh. The suicide rate

in India in the year 1999 was 11 persons per lakh

of population per year with 110,000 reported

suicides according to a study by the National

Institute for Mental Health and Neuro Sciences.

Karnataka with 12,488 suicides, stood third among

the states in India during 1999, next only to West

Bengal and Maharashtra.

Farmers suicides are a feature of drought prone and

economically backward districts; also, have spread to all

regions including prosperous agriculture belts. The

negative impact of globalization on agriculture through

the World Trade Organization regime has already

compounded the agrarian crisis brought in by drought.

Several agricultural commodities have seen a fall in the

prices in the last three years owing to imports. The lifting

of agricultural and power subsidies have pushed up the

cost of cultivation substantially. the withdrawal of safety

nets like the universal public distribution system for

food has increased expenditures for poor families.

Growing indebtedness in the rural areas among the

farmers is the main reason for the farmers to commit

suicide in Karnataka.

Almost all the farmers who have committed suicide

have taken the loan, which costs more than their total

land assets.

Situation became worst when the government

institutions stopped giving loan to the farmers. While

there are varieties of reasons, indebtedness is the

common factor in all the suicides.

Several relief measures are available in the schemes

sponsored by both the Government of India and the

State Governments.

They include the Calamity Relief Fund, National Family

Benefit Scheme, Raitha Sanjeevani Scheme, Pledge

Loan Scheme, Rashtriya Krishi Bhima Yojana, Minimum

Support Price, and ‘Sankata Harana’ scheme

implemented by the IFFCO. Many insurance schemes

are available for both farmers and public.

All these schemes are guided by the policies applicable

in general to any insured persons.

Some of the insurance schemes like (i) Janatha Rural

Personal Accident Insurance, (ii) Rajarajeswari Mahila

Kalyana Insurance, (iii) Bhagyashree Female Child

Kalyana Yojane, (iv) Insurance for Agriculture Pump-sets,

(v) Horticulture/ Plantation/ Floriculture/ Flower Insurance

Scheme, (vi) Insurance on Livestock, (vii) Insurance on

Poultry, (viii) Insurance on Carts, and (ix) Standard Kissan

Package Policy have all been offered by the Oriental

Insurance Company which directly or indirectly aims at

covering the farmers and their families.

SUSTAINABLE TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURAL

PRACTICES USED IN THE CARIBBEAN

• Intercropping & polyculture: symbiotic relations ‘tween plants (shade, rooting systems), plant diversity encourages natural biological control of insect pests, provides year round food supply.

• Crop rotation w/ legumes: helps retain soil fertility & year round food supply, (rotations involve red peas, cowpeas, string beans etc.)

Extension Administration did not think about poor farmers.

Lack of control on quality seeds and inputs and basic

guidance for selection of crop to be grown in rain fed areas

based on soil health.

There can be many other reasons like mortgage of land by

farmers to private money lenders/local dealers and so on

and so forth.

Left out poor farmers don’t have access to new technology

and information Poor farmers started copying the wealthy

farmers who had water resource and new technology, and

failed. Result – farmers suicide

Thank You