At Tangedupalli village of Chevella constituency, K. Venkataiah’s family of five condoled his death. He committed suicide on November 23 as he had accumulated a debt of ₹ 4 lakh, out of which over ₹ 3 lakh was money borrowed from local money lenders and wealthy relatives. Within one-km radius of Mr. Venkataiah’s single-storied house lived two money-lenders and small farmers, one of whom was an elected member of Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) member. Within two-km radius of the same house lived four other money lenders, two of whom were business men in Chevella town although they cultivated small farm lands.
A rural constituency located 50 km away from Hyderabad’s core city, Chevella is a money-lender’s paradise. Here, debt accumulated by landed farmers cultivating two to 10 acres of farmland is a matter of major concern. In 2014, Kale Yadaiah of Indian National Congress had won the Assembly seat polling 64,182 votes, only to join Telangana Rashtra Samithi later. K. S. Ratnam of TRS came second polling 63,401 votes. In the Dec.-7 elections, the race is straight between K. Yadaiah of TRS and K.S. Ratnam, contesting on Congress ticket. Debt crisis is acknowledged in manifestos of both parties.
Speaking to The Hindu , the money lenders who are also local campaigners of political parties in the fray, explained how the money chain in Chevella worked. “Venkataiah borrowed ₹ 50,000 from me to cultivate his land. He was to give me harvest worth the amount he borrowed. His death will affect my business too as I have nine acres of land to cultivate and I have accumulated a debt of ₹ 2 lakh borrowed from money lenders in Chevella town,” S. Ramulu, a local money lender of Tagedupalli, told The Hindu . His counterpart and an ex-MPTC, Laxma Reddy, had invested in his son’s marriage and was also in debt. Mr. Reddy who loans ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh per annum to local farmers, had also taken a loan of ₹ 2 lakh apart from ₹ 50,000 borrowed. Loans were taken by most to buy seeds and pesticides. In some cases farmers borrowed money to conduct marriage and death ceremonies.
Comprising five mandals, including Chevella, Nawabpet, Shankarpalli, Shahbad and Moinabad, Chevella Assembly constituency had also seen the rise of real estate in areas close to Hyderabad. Here land rates ranged between ₹ 70 lakh to ₹ 1 crore per acre. However, the farmers who lived in remote villages like Tangedupalli, seldom sold their property thanks to depreciating costs.
Far from Chevella mandal, in Nawabpet farmers largely remained disgruntled. While some were happy with the 24X7 power supply, others remained cautious of another year of scanty rain and mounting debts.
