“I feel ashamed to call myself an Indian”: Farmer Suicide Every 30 Minutes
“I feel ashamed to call myself an Indian after seeing what has happened here.”
Few words could be more apt. They are not mine, but rather the Congress Party’s ‘heir-apparent’, Rahul Gandhi. Although he used them to criticize the Mayawati Government in UP’s autocratic moves to seize land from farmers, the words resonate with something bigger that ails India.
To look for the roots of the problem, Rahul doesn’t have to look far. His family – Nehru, Indira, Rajiv – have played a huge part in that shame. India is now a country where a farmer commits debt-related suicide EVERY 30 MINUTES! This has been the case for the last sixteen years. I shudder to think what it would be for just Punjab alone.
Yesterday, Smita Narula, a Faculty Director at the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (CHRGJ), based at NYU School of Law, AND a Board of Director of ENSAAF, spoke on DEMOCRACY NOW!, a popular US radio show (pagh salute: Pali).
25 Responses to ““I feel ashamed to call myself an Indian”: Farmer Suicide Every 30 Minutes”
Don't give a monkey's about India. What I care about is Punjab and when it comes to farmer suicides in Punjab, each of us sitting here in London, Toronto or San Jose is guilty of not only providing the rope but also making sure the knot is tight enough for an effective death. I'm talking about the way that many of these farmers are in debt in the first place because of the expense of getting their daughters married. Every time one of us in the west tells daddy we want a big no expense spared wedding we are effectively guaranteeing the ruin of a family back home. Like it or not, we should be setting the right example for them back home………knowing that they follow our trends. Its got to the stage in Punjab where, if the farmer doesn't mortgage his land and borrow the equivalent of 50 years wages to have a big wedding bash he and his family is socially ostracised. (continued in next message)
…….. I got married in Punjab a few years ago and my one and only condition was that it should not cost my wife's family more than the cost of a sukhmani path. I know alot of other British Sikhs that go there with the same noble intention. On the other side of the coin though you've got the Canadian Sikhs that see the rural farming families as some sort of business deal cash cow and only marry those that borrow the most money to give to them. Look, I'm not saying the cost of marriage is the only or even major factor….but it is a factor….and its something we ourselves can do something about.
Responding to the post, issue raised close to our hearts and minds today, Your money is right where your pen is my friend. And it might prove yet again it is mightier than the sword if we learn to take it to a different level and wield it by joining our behinds, just where Jodha and the likes might be thinking to take it on TLH. Congrats to you and your wife for doing the right thing on your wedding. I wish to add however that when I did the same thing in 1972 when I went back from England where i lived then, to marry a Punjabi girl and returned only with one suitcase only of warm clothes and no cash, kind or jewellary (which she doesnt wear much even now although we lived in Dubai for 5 years), we were not Ostracised but were Applauded!!
Also, Punjab is the only state in India that doesn't have control over its irrigation water. The Indian govt. has diverted the waters towards neighboring states. The farmers can't make money if they don't have water to grow crops.
thank you Gagandeep, I was not aware of this. In my family's village there are increasing conflicts between individual farmers over the building of (ever-deeper) water pumps, which I presume is in response to this diversion of water.
The Indian govt's divide and rule tactics grow more shameful by the day…
"Also, Punjab is the only state in India that doesn't have control over its irrigation water. The Indian govt. has diverted the waters towards neighboring states"
Gagandeep Singhji, how did you arrive at this conclusion?
which planet do you live on?
High time people like you (esp neo-Sikhs) get their heads out of the sand and analyze the water problem in depth (literally).
Read this well-research article (2006): 'Land Of Five Rivers In Water Crisis And Water Chaos' By Umendra Dutt avbl on Countercurrents.org http://www.countercurrents.org/en-dutt051006.htm
Excerpt:
This crisis further compounds as dark zones are rapidly increasing in Punjab. The Green revolution agriculture system based on greed, exploitation and misappropriation of nature has enhanced the human lust for squeezing the Mother Nature and her resources. It has broken the mother-son relation of farmer and earth resulting ruthless use – misuse of earth resources. In 1970-71 there were only 1.92 lakh Tube wells in Punjab, in 80-81 there were 6 lakh tube wells, and in 90-91 number went up to 8 lakh, 2000-01 again number rises upto 10 lakh and now there are about 14 lakh tube wells. This has resulted in making districts after districts dark zone – the highly over exploited area. Entire fertile region of central Punjab is dark zone now plunging the state into unimaginable ecological catastrophe. After any area declared as dark zone no new tube well is allowed, but one can find hundred of drilling machines working in dark zones.
In 1984 there were 53 blocks as dark zones, in 1995 they were 84 and in 2005 the figure went up to 108 out of total 138 development blocks in Punjab. Ground water level falling much faster then assumed. In 1973 only 3% area of Punjab has water table below 10 meters, it goes up to 14.9% in 1989, 20% in 1992, and 28% in 1997, 53% in 2000, 76% in 2002 and in 2004 the situation goes beyond expectations when 90% area of Punjab is drawing water from the depth of more then 10 meters. More over 30% area of Punjab has depth of 20 meters or even more"
UNQUOTE
I know ostrich you would like to concur with such gloomy figures which have NOTHING to do with moronic "Indian govt (Hindus) stole our Sikhs water" line. Since your 'Punjab is the only state in India that doesn't have control over its irrigation water' is proven to be wrong, and cannot be blamed for deepening water crisis in Punjab (and hence suicides), i would suggest new theory for you – Government of India is stealing Punjab ground water for Hindu farmers in the neighbouring states…they have laid network of pipes in 'patal' the nether world.
I hope Citizen Singh would also have a better idea about the fights in his village have more to do with Punjab farmers' "…greed, exploitation and misappropriation of nature" and NOTHING with the scheming Indian government.
Asnine. Vacuous.
I fail to understand why any one has to commit suicide?
If farming is not finiacially viable then I guess
Punjabi University must translate this book by Spencer Johnson
"Who Moved My Cheese" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Moved_My_Cheese%…
in Punjabi and distribute it amongst the suicide prone brothers .
'Mera Paneer kehne hor kithe rakhtha ?" Yes, Harinder. I can just it flying off the shelves at Nurmahal District Library.
Seriously though, the problem with rural land in Punjab is that although farming that land doesn't bring in much money the land itself is some of the most expensive on god's earth. In my own village in Jalandhar district for example an acre costs the same as 10 acres in England and up to 50 acres in relatively cheap Canada or Australia. As such, its very easy, and sometimes tempting, to borrow obscene amounts of money on the back of such mega valuable security. Paying it back ?…..Well thats another story. A none too pleasant story that often ends with a noose around one's neck.
Let the new slogan then be
"No to Noose"
Suicides should be bannned and made a Sin.
There is no shortage of Land in this universe we after all live in a 'MULTI VERSE"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiverse
Are there any like minded people who are ready to help/support such families of Punjab via http://www.bnespunjab.org/ ?
-Mallika Kaur has written about them at http://sikhchic.com/article-detail.php?id=2309&am…
-Makers of the film Widow Colony made a new film on this and they did this based on works of Baba Nanak Educational Society
Please reply so we can collect funds and donate to this organization.
Wouldn't it be easier to simply ask the Canadian Sikhs to stop asking these families to take out massive loans to give to them…….i.e pimping themselves to marry the highest bidder ?
Wouldn't it be easier to en masse raid all those 'immigration advisors' sitting in their offices in Toronto and Vancouver who takes hundreds of thousands of dollars from these families (money they get from loans) ?
If this discussion here has shown us one thing it is this : We Sikhs want to blame everything on others. We never want to look at ourselves and see where we might be contributing to the problem.
yes above are the steps to prevent it happening in future but there is also a need to help/support the families who have lost their bread earners.
a)Drugs and b)Suicide are the modern day problems Punjab is facing.
I feel some cause could be
1)Super ego of Punjabi boys of what jobs they should do or not do.
2)Lack of dignity of labour.
3)Inability to work hard amongst the youth.
The questions youth should ask is
1) If I am facing grinding poverty should I commit suicide ?
2) If I am being denied justice should I commit Suicide ?
3) If I am cheated in love should I commit Suicide ?
What are the circumstances under which Suicide is Justifiable and a reasonable option ?
Sometimes suicide is the answer. But not when it comes to rural debts in Punjab because those debts are secured on the valuable land and on death, will pass on to the land's beneficiaries. So….why a farmer thinks passing a massive debt on to his wife and son is a good thing I do not know.
Looking at things on a wider level….looking for other solutions…..what can be done ? 4 simple options (in next message)
1) stop planting rice. There's no money in it and it uses 20 times the amount of water that other crops need.
2) If your son and daughter say they wanna go to university tell them to do a business management / agriculture course rather than the patheticaly obligatory 'Hotel Hospitality' course they all seem to do. Get educated in the valuable resource you have at your fingertips (land)……diversify your family land…..grow flowers…organic chillies or something and sell directly to European or north american wholesalers etc. Cut out the blood sucking vampire middle man : the Indian government.
3) Live within your means. Set the right example and others will follow. Have small weddings. Don't have big parties. If you really wanna car buy a maruti……..Those big suv's are just gonna kill the environment your kids inherit.
4) Stay away from the deras…nakli babas etc….re-find the Sikhi you once knew….and re-ignite that forever optimistic chardi kala attitude.
There you go then. Bish bosh bish. Suicide problem sorted.
To this I would like to add. Know mathematics language well. Read latest theories like "M Theory" and String Theory. Like farm land out of which you can grow food and earn your livelihood. From these theories you can make new gadgets like "Quantum computers" "New universes with abundant land" and "Ever life" .
Knowledge with Maths ,physics and engineering is the future.
Suicides is no answer.
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Blighty Singh, sorry my command over your country's language is a bit shaky so please help me in understanding some parts of your, otherwise, wonderfully written posts.
"Don't give a monkey's about India"
What do you mean? Are you saying you do not give a damn about other Indian farmers committing suicides? Their (non-Sikhs?) collective tragedy flies right under your moral radar?
I didn't understand, on one hand you are preaching about "re-finding Sikhi" and on the other you are being such an insensitive prick (pardon my french)! What you are suggesting is that Sikhs/Khalsas should be concerned ONLY about their co-religionists and if others are suffering from the same problem, they can go and get stuffed?
Guess what would happen if others also have the same attitude for Sikhs, imagine people's reaction for Wisconsin tragedy. How you would feel is some idiot wrote: I don;'t give a monkey about Wisconsin but….'?
I think his general point is that outside of what is happening to Sikhs, he care just as little (or as much) as farmers in Ecuador. Yes everyone's farmers matter, but given his specific concern with the Punjab and the Sikhs, thinking about them is key. I mean come on, you don't see the r ss visiting refugee camps in Gujrat.
I didn't understand the relevance of RSS visiting Gujarat refugee camps with farmers' suicides all over India. I also find it a bit puzzling why you have to defend Blighty on every thread, i believe the fella can answer himself.
Coming back to refugee camps, RSS must have visited refugees camps in Gujarat I m sure…RCs for Hindus 🙂
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