India Farmer Suicides Linked To Crop Failure, Climate Change (VIDEO)

Loss of government subsidies, international competition and recently erratic climate patterns are all being blamed for a staggering number of Indian farmers who are resorting to suicide, Al-Jazeera is reporting.

More than 17,368 Indian farmers reportedly killed themselves in 2009, the worst figure for farm suicides in six years and an increase of 1,172 from the previous year's figure, data from the National Crime Records Bureau indicate. Nearly all of the bereaved families of those who have committed suicide reportedly had problems with debt and land loss due to failing crops.

"Poverty has assaulted rural India," journalist Palagummi Sainath, an expert on rural poverty in India, told The Independent, before noting that most of the suicides are taking place in the region known as the nation's cotton belt. The price of cotton in real terms, he says, is roughly a twelfth of what it was 30 years ago. "Farmers who used to be able to send their children to college now can't send them to school."

Watch Al-Jazeera's full report on Indian farmer suicides here:

Comments

[Ninety Nine]

03:14 AM on 03/08/2011

The set price was a guarantee for the farmers and the subsidized price for the consumer. Without an alternate distribution system, the alternative was to be fleeced by middlemen (still happens) and both the farmers and the end consumers were losers.

[American Air]

06:39 PM on 01/12/2011

My Grand parents were farmers in India. When they harvested, they were forced to sell half the yield to the govt at the govt set price. So the left socialist govt can sell that to the rest of the poor and middle class in cities at subsided prize via the "Ration card" scheme.

Thats right.. the far left socialist Indira Gandhi govt stole from poor farmers to give other poor people.

Most farmers farm less than 1 acre lots! Imagine stealing from them.

The left Bengali "intellectuals"'s scheme has been equal and equitable distribution of poverty. Wealth creation was an anathema for them.

[American Air]

05:24 PM on 01/12/2011

The C0ngress Ieft party has ruled India 89% of the time (I mistated earlier saying 86%) and the Nehru fedual family has ruled 82% of that time!

Nehru prime minister of India, from 1947 until 1964 17 years

Indira Gandhi (Nehru's daughter who took the Gandhi's name just for name recongniti­on so the poor people would vote for her thinking she was related to Mahatma Gandhi)) Prime Minister of the Republic of India for three consecutiv­e terms from 1966 to 1977 and for a fourth term from 1980 until her d_eath in 1984, a total of fifteen years. 15 years

Rajeev Gandhi (Indira's father) was the 7th Prime Minister of India, serving from October 1984 to December 1989/91. = 7 years

Man Mohan Singh as a Proxie PM for Sonia Gandhi. He took the oath as the Prime Minister of India on 22 May 2004 = 7 years +

Total = 46 years

Lal Bahudur Shastri (Congress Party) = 2 years

P. V. Narasimha Rao (Congress Party) = 1991-1886 = 6 years

= 56 years. 56 years out of 63 years of India's independen­ce

http://en.­wikipedia.­org/wiki/L­ist_of_Pri­me_Ministe­rs_of_Indi­a

In all this time, the Ieft of India has not built infrastruture like irrigation for the farmers of India.

[American Air]

05:29 PM on 01/12/2011

Evidently, India was facing an economic crisis. At this point, the government of India sought relief from the supranational International Monetary Fund, which, while assisting India financially, imposed several conditions regarding India's economic policy. In effect, IMF-dictated policy meant that the ubiquitous Licence Raj had to be dismantled, and India's attempt at a state-controlled economy had to end. Accordingly, Singh, who had thus far been one of the most influential architects of India's socialist economy, reluctantly and slowly opened the Indian economy to foreign investment and business competition.[5][7]

[Ninety Nine]

04:29 AM on 03/08/2011

Nice analysis though you did hurt your credibility with "Nehru's daughter who took the Gandhi's name just for name recongniti­­on so the poor people would vote for her thinking she was related to Mahatma Gandhi"

You should do some more analysis and find how the other African/Asian countries that gained independence in the 1940s and 50s are faring.

You could start with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

[American Air]

05:21 PM on 01/12/2011

The Congress left party has ruled India 89% of the time (I mistated earlier saying 86%) and the Nehru fedual family has ruled 82% of that time!

Nehru prime minister of India, from 1947 until 1964 17 years

Indira Gandhi (Nehru's daughter who took the Gandhi's name just for name recongnition so the poor people would vote for her thinking she was related to Mahatma Gandhi)) Prime Minister of the Republic of India for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977 and for a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in 1984, a total of fifteen years. 15 years

Rajeev Gandhi (Indira's father) was the 7th Prime Minister of India, serving from October 1984 to December 1989/91. = 7 years

Man Mohan Singh as a Proxie PM for Sonia Gandhi. He took the oath as the Prime Minister of India on 22 May 2004 = 7 years +

Total = 46 years

Lal Bahudur Shastri (Congress Party) = 2 years

P. V. Narasimha Rao (Congress Party) = 1991-1886 = 6 years

= 56 years. 54 years out of 63 years of India's independence

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Prime_Ministers_of_India

[American Air]

07:08 PM on 01/12/2011

Rajeev is Indira's son..not her father. sorry.

[robertogt]

04:45 PM on 01/12/2011

You forgot to mention Monsanto and their wonderfully engineered GM crops that are worthless. Moneychangers are there to pick the bones clean.

[American Air]

01:40 PM on 01/12/2011

THIS IS UNSUSTAINABLE

70% of the population are farmers faming less than 1 acre lot. On top of that the socialist govt forces the famers to sell half their yield at govt set prices so they Govt can dole out cheap rice as ration for the other poor. This is simply unsustainable.

The same socialist govt has ruled India 86% of the time since India came to be. (The Nehru Feudal family) and have done nothing but Eva Peron like giving gifts to poor people which amounts to nothing. No infrastructure or water or anything in all the time they have been in power.,

[American Air]

01:31 PM on 01/12/2011

China has done so much better for their poor than the faux repulbic of India where this one single Sonia Maino/Nehry feudal have ruled since the country's founding and as long as they can pop babies...these fedual progenies are going to rule into perpetuity. And they have not owned up to keeping 600 million in abject d!rt poor poverty.

Sigh!

[American Air]

02:00 PM on 01/12/2011

No Hopie Changie for Indians..ever!

[American Air]

01:28 PM on 01/12/2011

The Ruling congress L eft party (that has been in power 86% of the time since India'[s independen­ce) suffers from Munchhause­n syndrome by proxy. It needs 600 million sick and d_ying so they can constantly mother them. Imagine these millions of people become like the other rich people of India. HoIy c0w..that'­s the end of the congress party. The H0rror of it frightens the Iefty congress family feudals.

[ShamsK]

11:56 AM on 01/12/2011

This video presents a distorted view of the situation by what it excludes. The large majority of suicides (which are much higher than stated) are occurring in the cotton belt. Most of these farmers were forced to switch from farming traditional food crops to GMO cotton -- almost all cotton grown in India is now GMO. And what is the preferred means of suicide? Drinking Monsanto's Roundup pesticides necessary for growing GMOs.

-----Original Message-----

[American Air]

01:26 PM on 01/12/2011

The Iralian Catholic woman Sonia Maino is doing nothing about it..even with absolute power and no opposition worthy of any threat.

[T-Faz]

11:50 AM on 01/12/2011

'17,368 Indian farmers'

This is just insane, where is the government.

[amber15]

12:29 PM on 01/12/2011

bought by Monsanto

[robertogt]

04:46 PM on 01/12/2011

YEP!

[American Air]

04:49 PM on 01/12/2011

Monsanto bought Sonia Maino the Catholic woman aka India's Eva Peron.

[American Air]

01:24 PM on 01/12/2011

The congress Party and the Nehru feudal family hat has ruled India 86% of the time and it has been bought by Monsonto.

[Ajita Kamal]

03:21 AM on 01/12/2011

In Delhi you can buy a sack of wheat from a local farmer- wheat that has been grown along the Indo-Gangetic plains for thousands of years- at a fairly high price. Or you can walk down the street to the department store and buy American-taxpayer-subsidized wheat for a third less.

[Lave909]

02:51 AM on 01/12/2011

i cannot believe the lack of empathy and the rude comments in regards to a country that is so stricken w/poverty and grief. Heads up folks, those seeds were pushed and sold to the farmers of India, by Hillary Clinton and Monsanto. Seems like they set them up to fail. It's a sad world we live in when people of this country (america), mock others, cheer for their unfortunate circumstances, and have no regards for human life, outside of their own small circle.

[tesuji68]

08:49 AM on 01/12/2011

I'm one of the people cheering. I have had 3 jobs sent offshore, forcing me to take lower paying and worse jobs. My jobs all went to India, so the more miserable they are, the happier I am.

[Clem2]

09:53 AM on 01/12/2011

That's really not fair. Why not be mad at the corporations who sent your jobs to India? The Indian people are victims of the corporations just as we are.

[audadvnc]

11:18 AM on 01/12/2011

Cheering the misfortune of others - This is the Face of America, folks.

[American Air]

01:34 PM on 01/12/2011

Don't you believe the Nehru fedual family that has been in power 86% of the time be held responsible? Don't they owe an explanation to the world and their country?

[realitytrumpsbull]

01:34 AM on 01/12/2011

Well, a couple of questions, one being the basic condition of the soil, another being availability of water, and sufficient implements to work with. If everything's OK in that department, then one question remains: What other crops could be substituted for cotton? If the market value of cotton is truly so low, as to not make it worthwhile, then there is literally a cornucopia of other crops to choose from. Tomatoes, potatoes, corn, wheat, barley, melons, and and and and and. Even tobacco. What is needed, what is available in the way of seed stocks, what else would be required to rotate crops based on better market value and providing more variety to customers and food producers.

[American Air]

01:40 PM on 01/12/2011

70% of the population are farmers faming less than 1 acre lot. On top of that the socialist govt forces the famers to sell half their yield at govt set prices so they Govt can dole out cheap rice as ration for the other poor. This is simply unsustainable.

The same socialist govt has ruled India 86% of the time since India came to be. (The Nehru Feudal family) and have done nothing but Eva Peron like giving gifts to poor people which amounts to nothing. No infrastructure or water or anything in all the time they have been in power.,

[Ajita Kamal]

03:04 AM on 01/12/2011

Lounge comfortably on that stereotype while we dominate the ranks of doctors, engineers, scientists and economists in the US, along with the other Asian minorities. We make up about half of the doctorate level graduate students in the country, and are, as a, ethnicity, amongst the wealthiest ones in America. But yeah, keep thinking of us as those guys who open the 7/11s.

[ResearchtheFacts]

12:01 AM on 01/12/2011

A far cry from those Bollywood movies where they are singing and dancing through the country side.  The incredible, amazing India. Outside of Mumbai the glitz and glamour fades.

[Lahonda]

02:16 AM on 01/12/2011

Mumbai pretty well sucks as well.

[Ian Faus]

03:06 AM on 01/12/2011

Actually there is no glitz and glamor in mumbai. Its a dirty, crowded hell that most Indians escape if they can afford it. The glitzy part of India is towards the Souther states like Bangalore and Hyderbad and in the North near Gurgaon .

Also its a bit ridiculous to take a few suicides and paint a picture of the way a BILLION people live ! It's like using Detroit as representative for every American city.

[ResearchtheFacts]

03:12 AM on 01/12/2011

That kinda of works too.  It paints a picture of the massive unemployed, decaying cities, crumbling infrastructure and citizens in despair.  Fits the metaphor for America now.  Also, I wasn't comparing these suicides to a billion people (what an exaggeration).  In contrast to those Bollywood movies it is pretty stark.

[GNAIR]

11:13 AM on 01/12/2011

Whoa hold it for a minute I live in Detroit?Michigan and it is not that bad.
I have lived in a number of US cities and Detroit is great compared to the other cities.
As for India yes when you have a population of 1 billion there are going to be problems.
I think this story is taken out of context and as always the headlines in HP are misleading.