Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his campaign in Tumakuru on Saturday, held Congress and the Siddaramaiah government responsible for the unabated suicides of farmers in Karnataka.
In his earlier poll rallies, Mr. Modi pointed out that Karnataka ranked second in farmer suicides in the country. Countering this, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had tweeted a report card by accusing him of benefiting private farm insurance companies at the cost of farmers.
Agrarian crisis may be a much spoken poll issue, but Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and other farmers’ groups say both the State and the Centre have taken only half-hearted measures.
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The Congress and BJP manifestos speak a lot about the farming sector. The JD(S) has promised farm loan waiver of ₹53,000 crore within 24 hours of assuming power.
Accusing the three political parties of cashing in on farmers’ suicides, Karnataka Sugarcane Cultivators’ Association president Kurubur Shanthakumar says they are fed up with all three parties and their tall promises. He is set to appeal to the Election Commission to restrain parties from giving “false promises”.
He cites data by the Agriculture Department, which reveals that over 3,800 farmers committed suicide in Karnataka in the last five years. Statistics also point to the fact that from December 2017 to March 15, 2018, 285 farmers ended their lives.
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Union Minister for Agriculture Radha Mohan Singh recently disclosed in the Rajya Sabha that farmers’ suicides rose by 32% in Karnataka in 2016 over the previous year.
The estimated vote bank from the farming sector is around 1.3 crore of the total 4.96 crore voter population. According to the National Sample Survey, the average monthly income of farming household in Karnataka is ₹8,832 and outstanding loan per agricultural family per year is ₹97,200.