ONLY A MARGINAL DECLINE IN FARMER SUICIDE RATES

Why in news?

• National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) records on accidental deaths and suicides shows that suicide rate in deeply stressed agrarian sector accounted for 7.7% of total (134,516) suicides in India.
• 10,349 farmers and agricultural labourers committed suicide in 2018.
• The year before – 10,655 cases were noted, so only a marginal 306 reduction.

Details and Concerns

• The fact that over 10,000 farmers and agricultural labourers committed suicide is a bigger concern than marginal increase on decrease in the various numbers.
• Problem in data, such as efforts by states to downplay suicides and tinkering with the definition of farmers. This would present a watered down version of the real picture.
• Example, 66 suicides were rejected by authorities in Karnataka on the grounds that the suicides were for reasons other than the agrarian crisis in the state.
• 2018 also saw a sharp increase in farmer protests across the country and triggered a wave of loan waivers.
• Maharashtra had highest share in farm-related suicides (34.7%) and Karnataka had the second highest (23.2%).
• West Bengal, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Goa and Union territories reported zero farmer suicides.

• Farmer sector has been under presser due to:
  • Recurring droughts and floods
  • Declining income from agriculture
  • Plummeting price of produce
  • Lack of minimum support price mechanism
  • Shrinking land holdings
• Other factors such as Falling Consumer Expenditure and Rural wages also have an impact on the agrarian distress.