Make a Difference!
Express your love to the Indian Farmer this Valentine's Day!!

Spend A Day (at least) in Solidarity With our Farmer Friends in Extreme Distress, Vidarbha

The continued farmer's suicides across the country are a National Shame. The politicians are helpless and often clueless, the press realizes that it cannot go on reporting farmer's suicides everyday. There is a counter on the story and it clicks faster than your daily sheet calendar. Yes, there are more than one farmer committing suicide in India today and it is a national shame.

The First three weeks of January 2007 alone have seen about 50 suicides in Vidarbha.
TEN MILLION farmers are in distress in the six districts alone.
- from the Government website as quoted in P.Sainath's article

A nation more sensitive and caring towards its farmers and agriculturists would have by now declared a day of shame or at least a state of emergency. But, our babudom and foreign money loving nethas are very busy protesting when an Indian actress is humiliated in a foreign land or congratulating themselves because Indian cricket team won a match! That is all they are currently capable of and what else can be expected.

While more and more widows, starved stomachs and utter exhaustion, disillusion and despair ravage one part of the country, the rest do nothing. In a phone conversation with Kishor Tiwari, President, Vidharbha Janandolan Samiti, he speaks in extreme anguish. "Who is there for these farmers? The State is destroying them, no one else is there to listen to our screams out here. The press call and come sometimes, since they want a few stories. Who else is there?"

But what about us? Citizens of a free nation, celebrating our freedom, sharing our love and wealth with friends and relations? Does the farmer's suicide disturb us? Do we even feel for them? Do we have the guts to stand up and be counted? TO SAY WE CARE FOR THE FARMER of this country?

If you do, here is an opportunity.

This February 14^th, when the world celebrates 'love' and giving and receiving gifts of love, let this country stand up in unison and say that we LOVE OUR FARMERS.

You can do the following:

1. Write a message of solidarity to farmers and post it on vidarba janandolan samithi
   
2. Write to your MP, MLA, CM, PM – tell them that you CARE FOR THE FARMER OF THIS COUNTRY and question them as to what is being done for him
   
3. Arrange for a meeting, procession, solidarity meeting in your area on the 14^th February, ensure that the local press covers this event
4. Organize prayers in local temples, gurudwaras, churches and mosques for the Indian farmer, ensure that others from your own neighbourhood, community participate in this meeting.
5. Visit a farmer, talk to farmers, spend time understanding the reasons behind the farmer suicides. Teachers can organize programmes for school children on this subject, college students can have a joint visit to the nearby farms and NGOs can organize visits to farms by their staff and other community leaders

Related Links:
- Striking a Note of Dissent , P.Sainath
- (Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti) http://andolan.blogspot.com/
Priya
FOR Samanvaya
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