Sambalpur: Issues affecting farmers and farming have always played a decisive role in every election. So was proved in the recent assembly elections in three states. Farmers of Sambalpur said they are not enthused by the chain of schemes announced by the state government. They said the fear of losing power because of farmers’ anger has gripped the state government which is trying hard to get into their good books. With elections a few months away, the BJD has reconstituted the Biju Krushak Janata Dal (BKJD), the party’s farmer wing. However, the dividends the party expects to get from this may not come, they said.
Suicides by farmers are a major issue in western Odisha. As per data sourced through RTI, no farmer has committed suicide over last five years. But the fact is that 37 farmers have committed suicide in last five years in the district. The district administration, however, does not admit that the cause of their suicides was unpaid loans or crop damage. Officials blame their deaths on family feuds, extramarital affairs and alcoholism. Farmers said the real reason for their deaths was not mentioned in the reports, and farmers’ organisations have been protesting several issues. Farmers in Sambalpur are upset over distress sale of paddy, irregularities in procurement, the mess at mandis and defrauding of farmers on weight while procuring paddy.
As per a report of the Agriculture Department, the district had been recording bumper harvests in both Kharif and Rabi since 2014. OP talked to many farmers on the state of farming in the district.
Farmer Ashok Pradhan said that as the BJD rules through bureaucrats farmers are always neglected, and their demands are ignored. The schemes being implemented are not beneficial to farmers, he added. He said that by reconstituting Krushak BJD the government has been trying to take credit, but it is not admitting the suicides by farmers and are not helping them. Ashok said this year paddy procurement has become a
total mess.
Saroj Mohanty, another farmer, said many farmers had committed suicide due to debts or loss of crop in 2009 in Sambalpur. Last year, 19 died. He said that officers were not accepting the real reason for suicides. Saroj pointed out that the MSP of paddy has not been hiked and bonus has not been given. Every year, middlemen and millers call the shots at mandis and the administration indirectly support it, he said.
Debendra Pradhan, a farmer, said the government has panicked due to results of the recent polls in three states.
The government has failed to pay crop insurance and compensation to farmers. The farmers have been fighting
for their rights and the mess in paddy procurement has created problems for them, he added.
Kanhucharan Majhi, a farmer, said that farmers are not getting MSP and that paddy procurement was in total disarray. Officials refuse to pay for the full weight of paddy citing poor quality, he added. He said that Krushak BJD was reconstituted only to gain the sympathy of farmers. But the functionaries posted in Krushak BJD have nothing to do with farming and farmers. If farmers get the right MSP for their paddy, suicides will end. He said families of those who have committed suicide have not got the ex-gratia promised by the government.
Farmer Rohit Kumar Biswal of Sarapalli said farmers are losers on all fronts. Fearing their anger, the government has reconstituted Krushak BJD, but it will not bring dividends to the government, he added. Some leaders have been rehabilitated in it. Paddy procurement is being carried out by officials, and they have an unholy nexus with millers, he said.
Dolagobinda Pradhan, a farmer of Charbhati, said for many years farmers are not getting the right MSP for paddy. Brokers are raking in the moolah everywhere, he said. Pointing out that the government has lost face among farmers, he said the revival of Krushak BJD will not help the government. Only the right MSP and bonus
to farmers will improve their condition, he said.
Farmer Kartik Biswal of Charmal said Krushak BJD will have no impact on farmers. Suicides by farmers have caused irreparable losses to their families. Traders are buying up paddy at mandis, but the administration has turned a blind eye to it, he said.
Bhaktabandhu Sahu of Maneswar said Krushak BJD was reconstituted to bag the votes of farmers. But that will not work. The administration has ignored the irregularities in paddy procurement and the weight frauds at mandis, he said. Pointing out that KALIA is a joke played on farmers, he said that if farmers are given subsidized fertilizers and seeds in time they would make profits.
Farmer Chandraserkhar Panda of Sindurapanaka said the reconstitution of Krushak BJD was not meant to help farmers. The farmers of Odisha know the reason for their problems. The families who lost their breadwinners have not received compensation, he said. The administration hardly listens to farmers and paddy procurement is a complete mess, he added.
PNN
