Friday, February 16, 2007

No government on earth can subsidize 60% Farmers

Dr Sudhir Kumar Goyal, Divisional Commissioner, Relief, Amravati, in an interview, has said that immediate relief had been given to farmers where interest worth Rs 782 cores had been waived off. But the entire loan cannot be waived. "Subsidies are given. But no government on earth can give subsidy to 60% of its farmers."

The Vidarbha farmers have been given fresh loans, which Dr Goel said was three times more than in the past.

This is called "singing a tune as per the ears of the listener". This is a sure indication that Congress political bigwigs are beginning to wake up to the rural crisis in Vidarbha and are being given instructions to dirty their white cotton linen kurtas and designer goggles. Politicians are now instructing bureaucrats to begin to appear reasonable and avoid the image of apathy and callous behaviour towards farmers.

After years of hiding the facts, then cautiously being forced to admit it, in the face of rising media pressure, local government officials have begun to sing a different from the tune that is being sung by the Indian Prime Minister, the Sensex Minister and the Cricket Ministers.

Let us see in which direction, the issue of Indian farm suicides heads now. Congress cannot risk an electoral rout in Vidarbha. It is now a matter of time before top Congress think tanks begin to look at the issue of agrarian suicides. And yes, they will first ask the Indian bureaucracy to shoulder the blame rather than take the blame on faulty agricultural prescriptions of last six decades which skim rural surplus for industrial subsidization.

Attempts will now be made to blame the plight of Vidarbha farmers, on faulty implementation of the Vidarbha package announced by the Prime Minister.

The real question not being asked is why, when the richest consumers on earth are shifting to wearing cotton, cotton growers in India are committing suicides.

Linen suits retail for Rs 8000, and cotton trousers are retailing in Western markets for Rs 2500.
The WTO Multi Fibre Agreement is rolled out and yet the Vidarbha cotton growers are suffering.
Should they not have been the richest farmers in the world by now ?
Is the Divisional Commissioner of Amravati not still talking on behalf of his masters and trying to sell a new story to the cotton farmers of Vidarbha ?

We will now hear many different perspectives on why farmers are committing suicides but people are still not ready to do a stock taking of the last six decades of New Delhi and Mumbai backed plunder of Indian rural areas.

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