Maharashtra’s farmers are facing a severe agrarian crisis, with the Amravati administrative district being the hardest hit, reporting 557 farmer suicides between January and June this year.

A report by the Amravati divisional commissionerate revealed that of the five districts in the division, consisting of mainly farmers from marginalised communities, 170 suicides occurred in Amravati, followed by 150 in Yavatmal, 111 in Buldhana, 92 in Akola, and 34 in Washim, according to PTI. Previous state reports indicated that between January and October 2023, 2,366 farmers died by suicide across Maharashtra, with 951 of these deaths occurring in the Amravati region alone.

The suicides are not a recent issue. For decades, Maharashtra has struggled with increasing farmer suicides, driven primarily by crop failures due to unseasonal and excessive rainfall, drought, and crippling debt. Farmers often take loans from private moneylenders at steep interest rates, and when they can't repay the borrowed sum, the pressure leads many to suicide.

Additionally, the government’s failure to set a profitable Procurement Price for crops like soybean, one of the main crops grown in the Vidarbha and Marathwada regions, has led to significant financial losses for farmers. MSP is at Rs 4,600 while farmers are selling soy at Rs 4,300 per quintal.

For years, leaders from various political parties have promised improvements and addressed the devastating farming crisis, but little has changed. Schemes for crop insurance and loan waivers have been poorly implemented, failing to benefit farmers effectively.

Of all the farmer suicides across the country, Maharashtra has been reporting the most number of cases for a few years now. According to the latest NCRB report of 2022, Maharashtra accounted for 37.6 per cent of deaths, followed by Karnataka at 21.2 per cent, Andhra Pradesh at 8.1 per cent, Tamil Nadu at 6.4 per cent and Madhya Pradesh at 5.7 per cent.

The NCRB data also showed an upward trend in the number of suicides involving people from the agricultural community across the nation, rising from 10,881 in 2021 to 11,290 in 2022. Despite the increase in numbers, the percentage of farmer suicides relative to all suicides remained constant at 6.6 per cent.

On average 30 farmers die by suicide everyday.

Congress leader Balwant Wankhade, who represents the Amravati Lok Sabha seat reacted to the suicide numbers released in the recent report and said Amravati tops the State on this count.

“Crop losses, lack of adequate rainfall, existing debt burden and absence of timely farm loan are some of the major reasons that drive farmers towards taking the extreme step,” he told PTI.

“The government should fulfil its assurances of doubling the income of farmers and provide assistance to them.”

While Nilesh Helonde-Patil, Chairperson of Maharashtra’s Vasantrao Naik Shetkari Swavlambi Mission, expressed serious concern over the rising suicide cases, emphasising the urgent need for a solution.

"The local administration is reaching out to farmers at the gram panchayat level with various government schemes to help them increase their income, and also in the education of their children and the medical cost of the family members. The government is standing behind the them. The Shetkari Swavlambi Mission is also facilitating easy communication between farmers and insurance companies," he said.

The Government has assisted families of the deceased in 53 cases, while 284 cases remain pending for inquiry.

(with inputs from PTI)