Vidarbha Farmer suicides highest in March
pradipmaitra@hindustantimes.com
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx?article=01_04_2007_004_011&typ=1&pub=264
You can find it at: ' Farmer suicides highest in March'HindustanTimes ePaper
Despite CM's claim that suicide rates were going down, 95 farmers ended their lives last month
Death row No. of suicides
2007 March 95 February 88 January 70 2006
2006 July 90 August 111 Sept 125 Oct 112 Nov 107 Dec 105
Nagpur April 1st 2007
WITH EVERY passing month this year, more farmers are killing themselves in Vidarbha – belying Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh's claims that the suicide rate has decreased.
With four more farmers ending their lives in the last 24 hours, the suicide figure in the region has touched 95 this month. It was 88 and 70 in February and January respectively .
According to reports reaching here on Saturday evening, one farmer each committed suicide from Nagpur, Bhan dara, Wardha and Gadchiroli.
The victims were identified as Prakash Dadaji Nimborkar of Kharpundi (Gadchiroli), Bhushan Haribhau Dhote, Rampuri (Bhandara), Avinash Lendare of Takli-Darne (Wardha) and Harish Madhukar Thote of Inderwada village in Nagpur district.
Deshmukh had claimed early this month that there had been a sharp decline in suicide cases due to swift packages for farmers and disbursal of more loans in the region.
"Any death in Vidarbha, for any reason, is dubbed as suicide, with the media claiming suicides are rising. Unfor tunately, the picture being painted is that nothing (suicide rate) is coming under control," the chief minister had said.
Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti chief Kishore Tiwari believes the CM is not aware of the ground reality.
"He does not know how officials of cotton marketing federation have been ruthlessly deducting over 50 per cent of money cotton growers make to adjust the loans. How will the farmers survive the whole year with this meagre money and start farming afresh in the ensuing kharif season?" Tiwari asked, reiterating that relief packages had not helped the crisis-ridden farmers.
Tiwari said 80 per cent farmers would not get the loans in the coming kharif season because of failure to repay the earlier amount by the deadline. The government has fixed a deadline of June 30 to repay the amount.
Meanwhile, Sudhir Goel, divisional commissioner of Amravati, admitted that only 25 per cent of the 10-lakh beneficiaries would be able to repay the loans. "If they fail to repay the amount by the deadline, they will not get the loan benefits," Goel told Hindustan Times.
pradipmaitra@hindustantimes.com
=====================================================================================================
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Friday, March 30, 2007
meanwhile in Vidharbha 250 farm suicides -p.sainath
Date:29/03/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/29/stories/2007032904471000.htm
Opinion - Leader Page Articles
And meanwhile in Vidharbha
P. Sainath
There have been some 250 farm suicides in just the first three months of this year. Things could be a lot worse after June. And, as always, the farm suicides are a symptom of the crisis, not its cause.
FARM SUICIDES in Maharashtra rose by over 354 per cent between 1995 and 2003. That's if the data of the National Crime Records Bureau are anything to go by. Strictly speaking they are not, being gross under-estimates. They draw from local machinery, which from region to region leaves out thousands from the lists of farm suicides. Yet, they still present a clear trend — a painful one. Even these twisted numbers show that farm suicides went up from 1,083 in 1995 to 3,836 eight years later.
For one thing, these figures are for all of Maharashtra. Which means if we were looking at just Vidharbha or Marathwada, the rise would be more horrendous. For another, these regions saw their greatest spurt in farm suicides after 2003 — where the last available NCRB data stops. The government of Maharashtra admits to 1,447 farm suicides in 2006 alone. And that's in only six districts of Vidharbha. So just these six districts saw far more suicides in 2006 than the whole State did in 1995. That's if we give credence to official readings of the data.
Events on the ground confirm the trend, if not the accuracy of the data. Nine women turned widows on International Women's Day in Vidharbha. That's how many farmers took their lives on March 8. The highest on a single day in the region's recent history. Till two weeks later, when it happened again. There have been some 250 farm suicides in just the first three months of this year. Things could be a lot worse after June. And, as always, the farm suicides are a symptom of the crisis, not its cause. They are its outcome, not its engine.
Just months from now, Vidharbha could see its first 100 per cent Bt cotton season. Bt cotton accounted for over 60 per cent of acreage last season. As acreage under it rises, so do the risks taken by the farmer. The Maharashtra government admits Bt cotton has fared very poorly in rain-fed regions. And it's clear that the seed companies might market much less of hybrid varieties in the coming season, if they do that at all. Why sell hybrid when there's more money to be made in Bt cotton? So even as many, including the National Commission on Farmers, call for making Vidharbha "an organic farming zone," the reverse process is in full swing. Even apart from its report, the NCF chairperson, Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, pressed the government of Maharashtra on the notion of an organic zone. But the State's own seed corporation is a major distributor for Bt cotton.
This gets more worrying when you look at the record of the last few years. The government began the last season's harvest with boasts of a "record" 350 lakh quintal "bumper crop." The claim was made by the State's Minister of Marketing, Harshvardhan Patil. And this grand success was swiftly credited to Bt cotton in some media reports. As the run of events punctured these claims, the figure was scaled down more than once. This is further confirmed by how little of cotton the official agencies have procured. For all of them together, the figure has not crossed 70 lakh quintals. And private traders are believed to have picked up around 110 lakh quintals.
In short, less than 180 lakh quintals. And this in a time of distress when the numbers should have been much higher, when farmers would have been desperate to sell. It means production could not have topped 220 lakh quintals, and could well have been less. Consider that in the `non-Bt cotton year' of 2003, procurement alone was over 210 lakh quintals. Production was far higher, at close to 250 lakh quintals.
This equation shows how high the risks are in the coming season. Vidharbha did better in a `non-Bt cotton year' than during one in which more than 60 per cent of the acreage was under Bt cotton. The State government's own report informs us that in preceding seasons too, "In rain-fed conditions, Bt cotton has not paid good returns." And 97 per cent of cotton grown in Maharashtra is unirrigated. Here's the nub: a poor monsoon could make the earlier crisis seasons look like the good old times.
There's more irony to the vanished `bumper crop.' It has in fact been so hard to find that cotton prices are better than we've seen in a long time. In some places, they are as high as Rs.2,400 a quintal. At Rs.1,500 a quintal, soybean too is getting a better deal than before. Well, go easy on the cheers. It means that most farmers will go back to these crops again. The present prices, though still not good enough for cotton, will prove tempting. True, some people have turned to other crops. And it would be a good thing, further, if even cotton growers reserved an acre of their lands for jowar. That would give their families some security. But this is not happening on any large scale.
When they return to cotton months from now, it will be to a Bt cotton-saturated season. Input prices will be higher. And yes, they will still use lots of pesticides. And the credit crunch will be far worse. Farmers are already figuring out the high cost of low interest loans. To begin with, very few had access to these six per cent interest loans. Those not repaying their sums by March 31 are out of the loop. Since not more than 20 per cent of them can do that, it means that farmers will be facing the old, higher rates again, very soon.
Since there has been no loan waiver, most will be unable to access the credit they need from the banks. So it's back to the new loan sharks: the input dealers, the sellers of seed, the fake finance companies. The more this happens, the more the dealers will determine the inputs the farmers use. And, as an official report put it, for Bt cotton, "the yields have been unstable." ( The Hindu , November 25, 2006). "When farmers invest heavily in purchasing seeds and other inputs, the net return has often been negative."
What's more, there is nothing to suggest that the present cotton prices will rule next season. Not a step has been taken towards a price stabilisation fund. That would have made a big difference. But it's another NCF recce that bites the dust.
With things that serious, you'd expect a sense of urgency in the government. True, a handful of officers have on their own made efforts to study and measure the crisis. As a government — not a thing has changed. The Prime Minister's package is a shambles. The Chief Minister's efforts consist of contacting more Babas and Ammas for the spiritual salvation of the Vidharbha farmer. Salvation comes at a price. Which could translate into a number of these godmen being gifted prime pieces of real estate worth crores of rupees in due course. Their agents are already out scouting for the best locations, which they will then ask the government for. The business end of spirituality has always been deeply rooted in terra firma.
If anything in this mess occupies the government's mind at all, it is the mounting numbers of suicides. These do not constitute the crisis in itself. But they are a great tragedy and bad publicity. And a huge embarrassment to the extent this government can experience that emotion at all. So the state get ever more creative.
The number of suicides in six Vidharbha districts gets worse. So how do we bring them down? By upping the `rejection rate' of such suicides. Surely we are the only country in the world that has a category called `eligible suicides.' (As distinct, say, from eligible bachelors or the like.) This term refers to those cases the state deems are `real' farmers suicides. This means the affected families will get some compensation. It does not matter that the rest — the ineligible — are just as dead. Or that their families suffer no less.
One government report records that the "number of cases reported" in the six districts in 2002 was 105. In 2006, that number was 1,447. That's an increase in farm suicides of over 1,300 per cent in cases reported in five years. But while 69 per cent of the cases in 2002 were found `eligible' for compensation, just 40 per cent of last year's cases were found `eligible.' So more and more farmers are killing themselves. But fewer of these deaths will be counted as `farmers suicides.' In 2006, this rejection rate rose sharply almost every month of the year. For instance, 60 suicides were found `not eligible' in January last year. In October the same year, the rejected cases were 120. Ever growing numbers are rejected in this desperate bid to dilute the bad news.
Simply put, what's rising fastest in Maharashtra is self-delusion. We could see big trouble from May-June onwards. Which could be terrible by Diwali time if the monsoon emulates the State and Central governments in its functioning.
© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu
Opinion - Leader Page Articles
And meanwhile in Vidharbha
P. Sainath
There have been some 250 farm suicides in just the first three months of this year. Things could be a lot worse after June. And, as always, the farm suicides are a symptom of the crisis, not its cause.
FARM SUICIDES in Maharashtra rose by over 354 per cent between 1995 and 2003. That's if the data of the National Crime Records Bureau are anything to go by. Strictly speaking they are not, being gross under-estimates. They draw from local machinery, which from region to region leaves out thousands from the lists of farm suicides. Yet, they still present a clear trend — a painful one. Even these twisted numbers show that farm suicides went up from 1,083 in 1995 to 3,836 eight years later.
For one thing, these figures are for all of Maharashtra. Which means if we were looking at just Vidharbha or Marathwada, the rise would be more horrendous. For another, these regions saw their greatest spurt in farm suicides after 2003 — where the last available NCRB data stops. The government of Maharashtra admits to 1,447 farm suicides in 2006 alone. And that's in only six districts of Vidharbha. So just these six districts saw far more suicides in 2006 than the whole State did in 1995. That's if we give credence to official readings of the data.
Events on the ground confirm the trend, if not the accuracy of the data. Nine women turned widows on International Women's Day in Vidharbha. That's how many farmers took their lives on March 8. The highest on a single day in the region's recent history. Till two weeks later, when it happened again. There have been some 250 farm suicides in just the first three months of this year. Things could be a lot worse after June. And, as always, the farm suicides are a symptom of the crisis, not its cause. They are its outcome, not its engine.
Just months from now, Vidharbha could see its first 100 per cent Bt cotton season. Bt cotton accounted for over 60 per cent of acreage last season. As acreage under it rises, so do the risks taken by the farmer. The Maharashtra government admits Bt cotton has fared very poorly in rain-fed regions. And it's clear that the seed companies might market much less of hybrid varieties in the coming season, if they do that at all. Why sell hybrid when there's more money to be made in Bt cotton? So even as many, including the National Commission on Farmers, call for making Vidharbha "an organic farming zone," the reverse process is in full swing. Even apart from its report, the NCF chairperson, Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, pressed the government of Maharashtra on the notion of an organic zone. But the State's own seed corporation is a major distributor for Bt cotton.
This gets more worrying when you look at the record of the last few years. The government began the last season's harvest with boasts of a "record" 350 lakh quintal "bumper crop." The claim was made by the State's Minister of Marketing, Harshvardhan Patil. And this grand success was swiftly credited to Bt cotton in some media reports. As the run of events punctured these claims, the figure was scaled down more than once. This is further confirmed by how little of cotton the official agencies have procured. For all of them together, the figure has not crossed 70 lakh quintals. And private traders are believed to have picked up around 110 lakh quintals.
In short, less than 180 lakh quintals. And this in a time of distress when the numbers should have been much higher, when farmers would have been desperate to sell. It means production could not have topped 220 lakh quintals, and could well have been less. Consider that in the `non-Bt cotton year' of 2003, procurement alone was over 210 lakh quintals. Production was far higher, at close to 250 lakh quintals.
This equation shows how high the risks are in the coming season. Vidharbha did better in a `non-Bt cotton year' than during one in which more than 60 per cent of the acreage was under Bt cotton. The State government's own report informs us that in preceding seasons too, "In rain-fed conditions, Bt cotton has not paid good returns." And 97 per cent of cotton grown in Maharashtra is unirrigated. Here's the nub: a poor monsoon could make the earlier crisis seasons look like the good old times.
There's more irony to the vanished `bumper crop.' It has in fact been so hard to find that cotton prices are better than we've seen in a long time. In some places, they are as high as Rs.2,400 a quintal. At Rs.1,500 a quintal, soybean too is getting a better deal than before. Well, go easy on the cheers. It means that most farmers will go back to these crops again. The present prices, though still not good enough for cotton, will prove tempting. True, some people have turned to other crops. And it would be a good thing, further, if even cotton growers reserved an acre of their lands for jowar. That would give their families some security. But this is not happening on any large scale.
When they return to cotton months from now, it will be to a Bt cotton-saturated season. Input prices will be higher. And yes, they will still use lots of pesticides. And the credit crunch will be far worse. Farmers are already figuring out the high cost of low interest loans. To begin with, very few had access to these six per cent interest loans. Those not repaying their sums by March 31 are out of the loop. Since not more than 20 per cent of them can do that, it means that farmers will be facing the old, higher rates again, very soon.
Since there has been no loan waiver, most will be unable to access the credit they need from the banks. So it's back to the new loan sharks: the input dealers, the sellers of seed, the fake finance companies. The more this happens, the more the dealers will determine the inputs the farmers use. And, as an official report put it, for Bt cotton, "the yields have been unstable." ( The Hindu , November 25, 2006). "When farmers invest heavily in purchasing seeds and other inputs, the net return has often been negative."
What's more, there is nothing to suggest that the present cotton prices will rule next season. Not a step has been taken towards a price stabilisation fund. That would have made a big difference. But it's another NCF recce that bites the dust.
With things that serious, you'd expect a sense of urgency in the government. True, a handful of officers have on their own made efforts to study and measure the crisis. As a government — not a thing has changed. The Prime Minister's package is a shambles. The Chief Minister's efforts consist of contacting more Babas and Ammas for the spiritual salvation of the Vidharbha farmer. Salvation comes at a price. Which could translate into a number of these godmen being gifted prime pieces of real estate worth crores of rupees in due course. Their agents are already out scouting for the best locations, which they will then ask the government for. The business end of spirituality has always been deeply rooted in terra firma.
If anything in this mess occupies the government's mind at all, it is the mounting numbers of suicides. These do not constitute the crisis in itself. But they are a great tragedy and bad publicity. And a huge embarrassment to the extent this government can experience that emotion at all. So the state get ever more creative.
The number of suicides in six Vidharbha districts gets worse. So how do we bring them down? By upping the `rejection rate' of such suicides. Surely we are the only country in the world that has a category called `eligible suicides.' (As distinct, say, from eligible bachelors or the like.) This term refers to those cases the state deems are `real' farmers suicides. This means the affected families will get some compensation. It does not matter that the rest — the ineligible — are just as dead. Or that their families suffer no less.
One government report records that the "number of cases reported" in the six districts in 2002 was 105. In 2006, that number was 1,447. That's an increase in farm suicides of over 1,300 per cent in cases reported in five years. But while 69 per cent of the cases in 2002 were found `eligible' for compensation, just 40 per cent of last year's cases were found `eligible.' So more and more farmers are killing themselves. But fewer of these deaths will be counted as `farmers suicides.' In 2006, this rejection rate rose sharply almost every month of the year. For instance, 60 suicides were found `not eligible' in January last year. In October the same year, the rejected cases were 120. Ever growing numbers are rejected in this desperate bid to dilute the bad news.
Simply put, what's rising fastest in Maharashtra is self-delusion. We could see big trouble from May-June onwards. Which could be terrible by Diwali time if the monsoon emulates the State and Central governments in its functioning.
© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu
Thursday, March 29, 2007
India's Sporting Funk
Wednesday, Mar. 28, 2007
India's Sporting Funk
Kishor Tiwari usually emails me a couple times a day. Tiwari is the head of an activist group that keeps track of farmer suicides in the central Indian region of Vidarbha, and lobbies Delhi for policy changes and more subsidies. Farmer suicide is a big problem in some parts of India, and Tiwari regularly fires off vitriolic email missives to reporters. But his most recent email, two days ago, was different. This time the source of his fury was not Indian farmers, but its cricketers whose disastrous performance at the World Cup — losses to neighbors Bangladesh and Sri Lanka — meant an early return home from the competition. After lambasting the players, Tiwari called on India's agriculture minister to resign, not forgetting, of course, that the relevant minister also sits on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Leaving aside their special interests for a moment, Tiwari wrote that farm activists "termed this defeat as national shame".
It's hard to worry too much about India's early exit in light of the other big news from the cup: the murder of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer. But in India, where people have been eagerly anticipating this event since, well, since the last one ended four years ago, the poor performance has been cause for despair even — or perhaps especially — amongst those for whom despair has become a way of life. So far, save a few demonstrators holding up signs calling on the coach Greg Chappell or the captain Rahul Dravid to resign, and a few cases where pictures of players were set alight for the cameras, that despair has not turned into violence. Most people seem depressed more than angry.
Amid the national soul-searching now under way, the BCCI says it will meet in Mumbai next week to analyze what went wrong. Chappell and Dravid will have their say. "We are disappointed but will listen to everything with an open mind," BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah told the Hindustan Times. But the pressure for change is already building. A non-scientific Times of India survey found that 87% of readers think Dravid should be removed as captain, while 92% feel one-time star batsman Sachin Tendulkar should be axed altogether. To the question "Is something fundamentally wrong with the way BCCI runs cricket in India?", 96% of respondents said yes. Eight out of ten people also feel cricket gets "too much importance in India".
None may be more depressed, however, than advertisers. South Asian television rights and the ad revenue generated by the coverage here accounts for close to 80% of the game's global turnover. But with India and Pakistan out of the Cup, audience size is expected to plummet. Advertisers are already demanding rebates on air time purchased on the assumption India would make it to the next round. "It is a crisis," Bharat Patel, chairman of multinational Procter and Gamble told the Times of India. "It's a house on fire situation. If the channel wants to consider a long-term customer relationship they have to concede. They have to give their customers better value."
The same could be said of the Indian team. But BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty says people need to have perspective. "There is disappointment but reactions were fueled by [television] channels building up the team in an unreal fashion," he told the Hindustan Times. "As the players return, we appeal for sanity. No one should be hurt." Not physically, anyway. In terms of national pride, the damage is already done.
- Find this article at:
- http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1604113,00.html
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
The reality behind the relief-vidarbha agrarian crisis DNA watch
The reality behind the relief
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1087655
1.the state government's door-to-door survey finds a whopping 75 per cent of the 17.64 lakh Vidarbha households involved in cotton farming in crisis. And that's the story of Vidarbha.
2. Vidarbha's agrarian volcano will explode by next Diwali. Relief packages haven't helped.As Sudhir Goyal, Divisional Commissioner (Amravati) observes: "Most won't be able to meet the deadline, and thus would fail to avail the benefit."
3.Meanwhile, the suicide toll in the six districts from January 1, 2007 has crossed 250, according to Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti. The toll was 1047 for 2006. Sadly, nine farmers committed suicide on March 8, better known as Women's Day, and on March 24 as well.
Jaideep Hardikar Thursday, March 29, 2007 01:03 IST
RALEGAON, YAVATMAL: Twenty-year-old Jyoti Kinake would have begun preparations for her marriage by now. Instead, the Gond girl isn't sure if she can ever realise her dream.
On February 17, her father, Shyamrao and brother Vinod, 18, consumed poison. That was only two days before the prospective groom was to come to finalise the marriage alliance.
Shyamrao, who tilled three acres of land, was in debt. And Jyoti's marriage was a worry. The moment he gave in to his tensions and consumed pesticide in his hut, a harried Vinod, his eldest son who shared his burden of loan, did not hesitate to follow his father.
Both became part of the list that now gets an average three to four names added to it every day in Vidarbha.
Farm activists fear Vidarbha's agrarian volcano will explode by next Diwali. Relief packages haven't helped. The government's promise of credit at six per cent rate comes with a rider. Only those who repay loans by March 31 would get the benefit. After that, farmers would pay regular 12-13 per cent interest.
As Sudhir Goyal, Divisional Commissioner (Amravati) observes: "Most won't be able to meet the deadline, and thus would fail to avail the benefit."
Meanwhile, the suicide toll in the six districts from January 1, 2007 has crossed 250, according to Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti. The toll was 1047 for 2006. Sadly, nine farmers committed suicide on March 8, better known as Women's Day, and on March 24 as well.
The suicide rate is declining, claims Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh. But Kishor Tiwari of the VJAS counters: "The government is rejecting cases of suicides-due-to-distress, and that is why the official rate of suicides is declining." The rate of rejection grows glaringly after August 2006, Tiwari points out.
A case in point is the suicide by Namdeo Shankar Jichkar in Hatgaon, near Darwha. The 30-year-old killed himself in September, last year. The government enquiry doesn't find Namdeo a farmer at all.
He was not counted as a farmer because the land is still owned by his father and he didn't have bank loans in his name, one of the several criteria to figure in the government lexicon of crisis-driven suicide. So, his suicide is "non-genuine," by the government's logic.
Yet, the state government's door-to-door survey finds a whopping 75 per cent of the 17.64 lakh Vidarbha households involved in cotton farming in crisis. And that's the story of Vidarbha
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1087655
1.the state government's door-to-door survey finds a whopping 75 per cent of the 17.64 lakh Vidarbha households involved in cotton farming in crisis. And that's the story of Vidarbha.
2. Vidarbha's agrarian volcano will explode by next Diwali. Relief packages haven't helped.As Sudhir Goyal, Divisional Commissioner (Amravati) observes: "Most won't be able to meet the deadline, and thus would fail to avail the benefit."
3.Meanwhile, the suicide toll in the six districts from January 1, 2007 has crossed 250, according to Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti. The toll was 1047 for 2006. Sadly, nine farmers committed suicide on March 8, better known as Women's Day, and on March 24 as well.
Jaideep Hardikar Thursday, March 29, 2007 01:03 IST
RALEGAON, YAVATMAL: Twenty-year-old Jyoti Kinake would have begun preparations for her marriage by now. Instead, the Gond girl isn't sure if she can ever realise her dream.
On February 17, her father, Shyamrao and brother Vinod, 18, consumed poison. That was only two days before the prospective groom was to come to finalise the marriage alliance.
Shyamrao, who tilled three acres of land, was in debt. And Jyoti's marriage was a worry. The moment he gave in to his tensions and consumed pesticide in his hut, a harried Vinod, his eldest son who shared his burden of loan, did not hesitate to follow his father.
Both became part of the list that now gets an average three to four names added to it every day in Vidarbha.
Farm activists fear Vidarbha's agrarian volcano will explode by next Diwali. Relief packages haven't helped. The government's promise of credit at six per cent rate comes with a rider. Only those who repay loans by March 31 would get the benefit. After that, farmers would pay regular 12-13 per cent interest.
As Sudhir Goyal, Divisional Commissioner (Amravati) observes: "Most won't be able to meet the deadline, and thus would fail to avail the benefit."
Meanwhile, the suicide toll in the six districts from January 1, 2007 has crossed 250, according to Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti. The toll was 1047 for 2006. Sadly, nine farmers committed suicide on March 8, better known as Women's Day, and on March 24 as well.
The suicide rate is declining, claims Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh. But Kishor Tiwari of the VJAS counters: "The government is rejecting cases of suicides-due-to-distress, and that is why the official rate of suicides is declining." The rate of rejection grows glaringly after August 2006, Tiwari points out.
A case in point is the suicide by Namdeo Shankar Jichkar in Hatgaon, near Darwha. The 30-year-old killed himself in September, last year. The government enquiry doesn't find Namdeo a farmer at all.
He was not counted as a farmer because the land is still owned by his father and he didn't have bank loans in his name, one of the several criteria to figure in the government lexicon of crisis-driven suicide. So, his suicide is "non-genuine," by the government's logic.
Yet, the state government's door-to-door survey finds a whopping 75 per cent of the 17.64 lakh Vidarbha households involved in cotton farming in crisis. And that's the story of Vidarbha
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, March 26, 2007
FARMER COMMITTED SUICIDE ON DAIS OF THE DAUGHTER’S MARRIAGE-SHAME SHAME
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
REGD. OFFICE: 11, TRISARAN SOCIETY, KHAMLA, NAGPUR - 440 025.
PH. 2282447/457 MOBILE-9422108846. vidarbha@gmail.com
==============================
REF: - FARMERS SUICIDES VERY-URGENT- PRESS-NOTE
VERY-URGENT- REQUISITION
FARMER COMMITTED SUICIDE ON DAIS OF DAUGHTER'S MARRIAGE
NOW 247 VIDARBHA FARMERS SUICIDES IN 2007 TOO
NAGPUR-27TH MARCH 2007
SUICIDE OF COTTON FARMER ON SUNDAY IN MARRIAGE CEREMONY OF HER OWN DAUGHTER HAS ONCE AGAIN BROUGHT THE HIGH COST MARRIGAE IN RURAL VIDARBHA HAS BEEN COMING OUT TOBE MAJOR REASON OF DISTRESS AND SUICIDE ,DEVIDAS TAYADE IS NOT FIRST TO DO SO MORE THAN 4500 FARM SUICIDES HAS SAME OR THE OTHER STORIES OF ECONOMIC CRISIS TO BRING THE ATTENTION OF INDIAN ADMINISTRATION.
"A Debt bidden farmer ended his life after solemnising the marriage of his beloved daughter .the deceased farmer devidas tayade (45) was a small farmers of village Brahman Wada thadi in amaravati distt.the incident occurred on Sunday at Savarkheda village in Morshi taluka at the time of marriage itself. Jyoti tied the nuptial knot with Pradip Gaikwad of Shirajgoan Kasaba. Devidas in the queue to bless newly married couple. When he reached the couple he collapsed on the dais.
Tayade was admitted to the hospital where doctor declared him dead. Tayade had consumed pesticide.
Tayade had sold his farm of more than three acre for marriages of two punam and jyoti .having become land less ,he was worried about how he would marry of his third daughter Varsha and complete education of his son Manoj ."
EARLIER ON 25th and 24 TH MARCH 2007 12 MORE FARMERS WERE REPORTED AS VICTIMS OF VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS WHO COMMITTED SUICIDES, THEY ARE
1.SUBHASH MOHURLE OF VILLAGE KINHI IN YAVATMAL
2.SHANKAR ZODE IN DEWALA IN YAVATMAL
3.DAVIDAS TAYADE IN BRAHMAN THADI IN AMARAVATI
4.NAMDEO TAG OF MURTIJAPUR IN AKOLA
5.ANKUSH LATHAL OF CHATKHED IN AKOLA
6.BABAN BHIMATE KRISHNNA IN WASHIM
7.RAMESH NEMANE OF PASARNI IN WARDHA
8.SURESH KADAM OF SALPHAD IN WARDHA
9.KISHATTANNA DESHATTIWAR OF CHANAKH AIN YAVATMAL
10.DIKARAM DHOTTARKAR OF TADULWANI IN NAGPUR
11.PRABHAKAR KALE OF ALIPUR IN WARDHA
12.BHAGWANTRAO PHUNDKAR OF KHUBHARGOAN IN AMARAVATI
vidarbha farm suicides taking total toll 247 in 2007 and 89 till date in March and 70 and 88 in Jan. and Feb., 2007.
After visit of Indian prime minister to vidarbha on 30th June and 1st July 2006 and announcement of special package of Rs.3750/- to around 3 million distress farmers of west vidarbha but even though PMO was monitor the progress of relief aid, the result after all most nine month that only 10% of relief amount reached to the farmers in distress that also in indirect form .the govt. administration has diverted fund at their will and wish more over very unfortunate part of relief aid after your NAGPUR visit that local administration has decided to reject all most of all cases of farm widows compensation on the ground that these suicides are not due agrarian crisis.
Now both budget of Indian and maharashtra govt. are placed before the respective houses for sanction but both failed to address vidarbha agrarian crisis as main demands of cotton growers regarding restoration of cotton rate Rs.2500 per quintal and complete loan waiver, and having seen the main demands of cotton farmers being rejected more and more suicides are daily reported which is very serious matter.
In a letter to Indian prime minister .it is demanded that in order to save 3 million farmers of vidarbha, to provide targeted relief in Indian budget, which are
1.RESORETION OF COTTON PRICE AT THE RATE OF RS.2500/- PER QUINTAL
2.COMPLETE LOAN WAIVER TO ALL VIDARBHA FARMERS
3.BAN ON GMO COTTONSEED AND CHEMICAL FARMING IN VIDARBHA
Please arrange release this press note
Thanking you
Yours faithfully
KISHOR TIWARI
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti
Debt ridden: Vidarbha farmers seek relief -NDTV REPORTS
Debt ridden: Vidarbha farmers seek relief
Quote
" We either want the government to give us justice or give us the permission to commit suicide "
- Kailash Ingole
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070006875#
Monday, March 26, 2007 (Nagpur)
The union government is implementing a relief package for debt ridden farmers of six of the worst affected districts of Vidarbha in Maharashtra.
But farmers of the remaining five districts continue to be subjected to the tactics of recovery agents from banks and moneylenders.
Six such farmers from a village in Nagpur District have now petitioned the High Court saying they should either be given justice or the permission to commit suicide.
Bank threats
Kailash Ingole had four acres of farmland and yet he has been forced to work as a daily wage farm labourer on other farmers' lands.
Moneylenders from the village took over Kailash's land, worth at least a lakh for a loan he had taken of a mere Rs 12,000.
A cooperative bank is now threatening to auction Kailash's home for another small loan he had taken nearly two decades back.
"On paper I was given Rs 30,000 but only Rs 25,000 was actually given to me. I paid back the full Rs 30,000, but now they want me to pay Rs 37,000 more, because of the interest," said Kailash.
Hefty interest
With crops failing every year, banks tend to prefer giving out loans for things like house repair rather than to farmers for their crop.
The interest on these loans is hefty. With the crops failing, paying back becomes impossible and soon there are threats and notices to auction the property.
"My wife was at home. I wasn't. They asked her to pay back the amount in full. They threatened to take away all our belongings and auction our house," said Kailash.
In an attempt to avoid the embarrassment and shame of the situation, six farmers from Malewada in Nagpur, including Kailash, filed a petition before the Nagpur bench of the Mumbai High Court.
They requested the court give them permission to end their lives.
"We either want the government to give us justice or give us the permission to commit suicide," he said.
These farmers also claim that, when it comes to debt recovery, these co-op banks are worse than the illegal money lenders.
=================================================================================================
Quote
" We either want the government to give us justice or give us the permission to commit suicide "
- Kailash Ingole
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence
Monday, March 26, 2007 (Nagpur)
The union government is implementing a relief package for debt ridden farmers of six of the worst affected districts of Vidarbha in Maharashtra.
But farmers of the remaining five districts continue to be subjected to the tactics of recovery agents from banks and moneylenders.
Six such farmers from a village in Nagpur District have now petitioned the High Court saying they should either be given justice or the permission to commit suicide.
Bank threats
Kailash Ingole had four acres of farmland and yet he has been forced to work as a daily wage farm labourer on other farmers' lands.
Moneylenders from the village took over Kailash's land, worth at least a lakh for a loan he had taken of a mere Rs 12,000.
A cooperative bank is now threatening to auction Kailash's home for another small loan he had taken nearly two decades back.
"On paper I was given Rs 30,000 but only Rs 25,000 was actually given to me. I paid back the full Rs 30,000, but now they want me to pay Rs 37,000 more, because of the interest," said Kailash.
Hefty interest
With crops failing every year, banks tend to prefer giving out loans for things like house repair rather than to farmers for their crop.
The interest on these loans is hefty. With the crops failing, paying back becomes impossible and soon there are threats and notices to auction the property.
"My wife was at home. I wasn't. They asked her to pay back the amount in full. They threatened to take away all our belongings and auction our house," said Kailash.
In an attempt to avoid the embarrassment and shame of the situation, six farmers from Malewada in Nagpur, including Kailash, filed a petition before the Nagpur bench of the Mumbai High Court.
They requested the court give them permission to end their lives.
"We either want the government to give us justice or give us the permission to commit suicide," he said.
These farmers also claim that, when it comes to debt recovery, these co-op banks are worse than the illegal money lenders.
==============================
Indian farmers abandoning cotton
Indian farmers abandoning cotton
| By Zubair Ahmed BBC News, Vidarbha |
At the crack of dawn, Prakash Powar's family in Kulzari village in Maharashtra's cotton-growing Vidarbha region is up and about.
Powar, 26, works as a farm labourer and is getting ready to leave for his day's work. Others are preparing to take the cattle to the field.
Until recently, the Powars - like all others in their neighbourhood - were cotton farmers.
But things have changed now, the family no longer grows cotton.
Powar's father committed suicide last year due to mounting debts and Prakash Powar decided to become a farm labourer.
The tiny Kulzari village of 500 people predominantly grows cotton, and the farmers here, as all across Vidarbha, are caught in a cycle of debt and there have been several suicides.
In Vidarbha, on average, three debt-trapped farmers commit suicide every day. And cotton has now been dubbed "the killer crop".
In protest, a few months ago the entire village decided to stop growing cotton and switch to alternative cash crops, such as lentils.
Prakash Powar was part of the collective decision-making process.
Alternative crops
"The entire village sat together. There were influential people as well. We all decided that cotton will not be grown in the village, because we don't get the right price for it," he says.
Raju Rathode is a farmer who, like others, is in debt and thinking of abandoning cotton.
"In a month's time, some more villages are going to have a meeting in which they'll debate the idea of growing alternative crops," he tells me.
Kulzari's decision may sound like a desperate attempt to draw the authorities' attention to their plight rather than a well-considered plan of switching to more profitable crops.
But the villagers insist their decision is final.
Says Rathode: "We will grow maze, soya beans and lentils, enough to feed ourselves, not to sell. We'll work in other people's fields as labourers or work in cities to earn some cash."
The idea is catching on.
Dr RL Pitale, a former member of the National Commission on Farmers, says he is visited by cotton-growers who seem determined to switch to alternative crops.
Loss making
"They want to produce enough to just feed their bellies and for other expenses they say they want to work in cities as rickshaw pullers or daily wage workers."
From farmers who owned plots of land to farm labourers who work on other people's land - that's the plight of many in this village.
A relatively rich farmer, Suresh Bulenwar, in a neighbouring village explains how growing cotton has become a loss-making activity which is fuelling suicides.
"It costs 10,000 to 12,000 rupees ($238 to $285) to grow cotton in one acre of land. But the yield fetches only 7,000 to 8,000 rupees ($166 to $190)," he says.
"The farmer borrows money from money lenders after defaulting on his bank repayment and then commits suicide when he is unable to pay back the money lender."
Dr Pitale refers to a recent report which says the input costs of seeds, pesticides and fertilisers have risen by 50%.
"This has led to the agricultural production costs going higher and incomes going down."
Urban lifestyle
Kishor Tiwari, who has been campaigning for the farmers' rights for many years, believes their rising personal expenses too are to blame for their plight.
"The reach of television means the farmer watches the urban lifestyle. He wants a TV, a motorcycle, a fridge and the urban lifestyle. His income doesn't permit it. So, he borrows, but is unable to pay it back."
He says "the government and policy makers need to look into this aspect as well.
It seems the government is listening, but only partially.
Sreekar Pradesi is among Yavatmal's leading district administrators.
"To solve the farmers' problems, we are trying to reduce their input costs. We are inviting schools and women's groups to participate in water conservation efforts so that the farmers can grow at least one more crop during the season," he says.
Experts say growing two crops a year will help raise the farmer's income level.
But for that to happen, the government first needs to convince farmers, such as Prakash Powar, not to give up cotton cultivation.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/6434957.stm
Published: 2007/03/26 09:05:40 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Budget sidelined distressed Vidarbha farmers again -sweta reports in HT today
Budget sidelined distressed Vidarbha farmers again
Sweta Ramanujan-Dixit
Mumbai
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx?article=25_03_2007_005_008&typ=1&pub=264
" Unlike the Union Finance Minister, at least the state finance minister mentioned the word 'suicide'. But there is nothing for farmers in the budget beyond that. Kishore Tiwari, Vidarbha Jana Andolan Samiti
"THIS TIME, the FM mentioned the 'S' word but it ended there," rued Kishore Tiwari, who leads the Vidarbha Jana Andolan Samiti. His words reflect anger directed at the state government for ignoring the issue of farmer suicides in the budget.
"Unlike Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, at least the state finance minister mentioned the word 'suicide'," he added. "But there is nothing for farmers in the budget beyond that." In the first three months of this year alone, 233 farmers have committed suicide. Three suicides were reported when Finance Minister Jayant Patil presented the budget in the State Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
"What the state has mentioned are centrally-aided schemes. Our government has not done anything. Are they serious about Vidarbha?" he asked.
" The budget either talks about money disbursed in the previous two years or proposed funds for assistance to farmers. But when it comes to provisions for tackling the agrarian crisis in Vidarbha immediately, the budget is silent.
"Patil has not made any provision this year to run the relief package for farmers," Tiwari pointed out.
The only revised provisions are the additional Rs 2 crore allocated for or ganic farming projects in 2007-08 and Rs 5 crore under the community marriage scheme.
"The budget is very populist," said L.M. Bhole, professor of Economics, Indian Institute of Technology- Mumbai. "Agriculture needs radical transformation. A little credit here and a little assistance there does not help." According to Shahaji Narwade, a horticulturist with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' Tuljapur campus, the lack of relief for areas facing loadshedding will compound farmers' disappointment. "Loadshedding affects rural areas the most. Farmers can't even draw water to their fields," he said.
Narwade, who was also on the TISS team that probed the farmers' suicides in Vidarbha, added that there should have been some compensation for sugarcane farmers because the lifecycle of the crop is over but all of it has not been crushed yet.
sweta.ramanujan@hindustantimes.com
Sweta Ramanujan-Dixit
Mumbai
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx?article=25_03_2007_005_008&typ=1&pub=264
" Unlike the Union Finance Minister, at least the state finance minister mentioned the word 'suicide'. But there is nothing for farmers in the budget beyond that. Kishore Tiwari, Vidarbha Jana Andolan Samiti
"THIS TIME, the FM mentioned the 'S' word but it ended there," rued Kishore Tiwari, who leads the Vidarbha Jana Andolan Samiti. His words reflect anger directed at the state government for ignoring the issue of farmer suicides in the budget.
"Unlike Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, at least the state finance minister mentioned the word 'suicide'," he added. "But there is nothing for farmers in the budget beyond that." In the first three months of this year alone, 233 farmers have committed suicide. Three suicides were reported when Finance Minister Jayant Patil presented the budget in the State Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
"What the state has mentioned are centrally-aided schemes. Our government has not done anything. Are they serious about Vidarbha?" he asked.
" The budget either talks about money disbursed in the previous two years or proposed funds for assistance to farmers. But when it comes to provisions for tackling the agrarian crisis in Vidarbha immediately, the budget is silent.
"Patil has not made any provision this year to run the relief package for farmers," Tiwari pointed out.
The only revised provisions are the additional Rs 2 crore allocated for or ganic farming projects in 2007-08 and Rs 5 crore under the community marriage scheme.
"The budget is very populist," said L.M. Bhole, professor of Economics, Indian Institute of Technology- Mumbai. "Agriculture needs radical transformation. A little credit here and a little assistance there does not help." According to Shahaji Narwade, a horticulturist with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' Tuljapur campus, the lack of relief for areas facing loadshedding will compound farmers' disappointment. "Loadshedding affects rural areas the most. Farmers can't even draw water to their fields," he said.
Narwade, who was also on the TISS team that probed the farmers' suicides in Vidarbha, added that there should have been some compensation for sugarcane farmers because the lifecycle of the crop is over but all of it has not been crushed yet.
sweta.ramanujan@hindustantimes.com
Friday, March 23, 2007
THREE MORE YOUNG DALIT FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE MAHARASHTRA BUDGET DAY AS GOVT. FAILED TO GIVE BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF RELIEF PACKAG
FROM
KISHOR TIWARI
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
SUB- THREE MORE YOUNG DALIT FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE MAHARASHTRA BUDGET DAY AS GOVT. FAILED TO GIVE BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF RELIEF PACKAGE
Nagpur-23rd MARCH 2007,
Three more young dalit farmer suicides reported on the day when Maharashtra Finance Minister Jayant Patil was presenting annual budget in maharashtra assembly i.e.22nd March, 2007 taking toll to 75 in this month of march as earlier in feb.88 and Jan. 70 farm suicides reported taking total toll to 233 in year 2007 which all most double in comparison same period in 2006 this followed by the more than 1400 farm suicides in year 2006 as per govt. of Maharashtra official figure.
Names of the farmers who committed suicides on 22nd march, 2007 are two from amaravati and one from bhandara district, they are.
1.RAJU PISE OF VILLAGE ASHTA IN AMARAVATI
2.SANJAY VAIDYA OF VILLAGE KURJA IN BHANDARA
3.NITIN KAMDI OF VILLAGE WARUD IN AMARAVATI
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti reported today on 23 rd MARCH,2007.
GOVT. FAILED TO GIVE BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF RELIEF PACKAGE
we are shocked to see that maharashtra govt. failed provide budgetary allocation for all ready announced relief aid as all packages declared earlier are for three year hence to make these relief packages fund availability is must that govt. of mahrashtra failed to provide ,it means that maharashtra govt. has packed up the relief package.
Vidarbha agrarian crisis has resulted in mass farm suicides due to continuous distress caused as per govt. of maharashtra large scale survey and study reports that it's due to debt, crop failure and complete failure of health care, food care and education and employment support systems in rural vidarbha but maharashtra budget failed to provide any targeted relief in these areas, kishor tiwari added.
vidarbha Jan andolan samiti(VJAS) has been demanding that to save 1.7 million cotton farmers who deep distress to provide complete debt waiver and cotton crop protection and all front ,ban on chemical farming along with restoration of health care, education, rural employment and food security to rural masses of vidarbha. "complete rejection cotton farmers main demands will have very serious impact on distress farming community and it's very unfortunate" kishor tiwari told "how many more farm suicides govt. needs to act on targeted relief areas?" VJAS urged .
===============================================================================================================
Thanking you,
Yours faith fully
Kishor Tiwari
Vidarbha Jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-094222108846
KISHOR TIWARI
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
SUB- THREE MORE YOUNG DALIT FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE MAHARASHTRA BUDGET DAY AS GOVT. FAILED TO GIVE BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF RELIEF PACKAGE
Nagpur-23rd MARCH 2007,
Three more young dalit farmer suicides reported on the day when Maharashtra Finance Minister Jayant Patil was presenting annual budget in maharashtra assembly i.e.22nd March, 2007 taking toll to 75 in this month of march as earlier in feb.88 and Jan. 70 farm suicides reported taking total toll to 233 in year 2007 which all most double in comparison same period in 2006 this followed by the more than 1400 farm suicides in year 2006 as per govt. of Maharashtra official figure.
Names of the farmers who committed suicides on 22nd march, 2007 are two from amaravati and one from bhandara district, they are.
1.RAJU PISE OF VILLAGE ASHTA IN AMARAVATI
2.SANJAY VAIDYA OF VILLAGE KURJA IN BHANDARA
3.NITIN KAMDI OF VILLAGE WARUD IN AMARAVATI
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti reported today on 23 rd MARCH,2007.
GOVT. FAILED TO GIVE BUDGETARY ALLOCATION FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF RELIEF PACKAGE
we are shocked to see that maharashtra govt. failed provide budgetary allocation for all ready announced relief aid as all packages declared earlier are for three year hence to make these relief packages fund availability is must that govt. of mahrashtra failed to provide ,it means that maharashtra govt. has packed up the relief package.
Vidarbha agrarian crisis has resulted in mass farm suicides due to continuous distress caused as per govt. of maharashtra large scale survey and study reports that it's due to debt, crop failure and complete failure of health care, food care and education and employment support systems in rural vidarbha but maharashtra budget failed to provide any targeted relief in these areas, kishor tiwari added.
vidarbha Jan andolan samiti(VJAS) has been demanding that to save 1.7 million cotton farmers who deep distress to provide complete debt waiver and cotton crop protection and all front ,ban on chemical farming along with restoration of health care, education, rural employment and food security to rural masses of vidarbha. "complete rejection cotton farmers main demands will have very serious impact on distress farming community and it's very unfortunate" kishor tiwari told "how many more farm suicides govt. needs to act on targeted relief areas?" VJAS urged .
===============================================================================================================
Thanking you,
Yours faith fully
Kishor Tiwari
Vidarbha Jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-094222108846
Thursday, March 22, 2007
How many deaths will it take till the state government knows?
How many deaths will it take till the state government knows?
Smita Deshmukh
Smita Deshmukh
Tuesday, March 20, 2007 23:59 IST
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1086129
It was a relief package meant for the debt-ridden farmers of Vidarbha, but co-operative banks seem to have reaped the most from it.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a Rs 3,750 crore package to bring the farmers back from the brink. But out of it, Rs 810 crore has been earmarked as interest waiver to co-operative banks, Rs 2,410 crore for kickstarting irrigation projects, and the remaining Rs 530 crore for relief packages and projects, such as quality seed replacement for the farmers.
Frustrated with the gross anomaly in the disbursement of relief money, farm activist Kishor Tiwari is planning to move the court.
Rubbishing the state officials claim that the funds have reached many farmers, BJP leader Nitin Gadkari, who himself is from Vidarbha, told DNA, "It is a total eyewash. The biggest beneficiaries have been the co-operative banks in Yavatmal and Buldhana districts. They have overcome their financial crisis." The woeful saga continues in 2007, which has seen 219 farmers committing suicide - 70 in January, 88 in February and 61 this month.
Often ridiculed by the state government as "suicide" spokesperson, Kishor Tiwari of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti expressed anguish over 11 cotton farmers coomitting suicide on Gudi Padwa.
"What is the point of giving seeds to farmers when they have nothing to eat, or giving them cows when they have no money to buy feed," he asked. Tiwari e-mails the latest data all officials under the email ID suicideupdate@gmail.com.
"I wonder how many more deaths will it take to wake up this government," he rued.
Slamming the co-operative bank chiefs, Ramdas Kadam, leader of Opposition in the state assembly, said, "These banks have slapped higher rate of interest on farmers to swindle money. The PM's package is ill-conceived and will never reach the Vidarbha farmers. Instead, it will make corrupt Congress and NCP politicians very rich."
http://www.dnaindia.com/report
It was a relief package meant for the debt-ridden farmers of Vidarbha, but co-operative banks seem to have reaped the most from it.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a Rs 3,750 crore package to bring the farmers back from the brink. But out of it, Rs 810 crore has been earmarked as interest waiver to co-operative banks, Rs 2,410 crore for kickstarting irrigation projects, and the remaining Rs 530 crore for relief packages and projects, such as quality seed replacement for the farmers.
Frustrated with the gross anomaly in the disbursement of relief money, farm activist Kishor Tiwari is planning to move the court.
Rubbishing the state officials claim that the funds have reached many farmers, BJP leader Nitin Gadkari, who himself is from Vidarbha, told DNA, "It is a total eyewash. The biggest beneficiaries have been the co-operative banks in Yavatmal and Buldhana districts. They have overcome their financial crisis." The woeful saga continues in 2007, which has seen 219 farmers committing suicide - 70 in January, 88 in February and 61 this month.
Often ridiculed by the state government as "suicide" spokesperson, Kishor Tiwari of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti expressed anguish over 11 cotton farmers coomitting suicide on Gudi Padwa.
"What is the point of giving seeds to farmers when they have nothing to eat, or giving them cows when they have no money to buy feed," he asked. Tiwari e-mails the latest data all officials under the email ID suicideupdate@gmail.com.
"I wonder how many more deaths will it take to wake up this government," he rued.
Slamming the co-operative bank chiefs, Ramdas Kadam, leader of Opposition in the state assembly, said, "These banks have slapped higher rate of interest on farmers to swindle money. The PM's package is ill-conceived and will never reach the Vidarbha farmers. Instead, it will make corrupt Congress and NCP politicians very rich."
===========================================================
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Indian Tribals and Hunger - Incredible India -
Indian Tribals and Hunger - Incredible India -
http://janjati.blogspot.com/
Maharshtra Onions and Bureaucrats
The real reasons for Maharashtra government and politicians apathy towards starvation deaths of Maharashtra KOLAM tribals are being revealed now like the skins of the Maharashtra Onion. One by one the Maharashtra onion peels are coming off :
PIL ON STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS OF KOLAM TRIBALS :
STATE GOVERNMENT'S APATHY TOWARDS SOLVING THE BURNING ISSUES OF TRIBALS SURFACED IN JOINT MEETING :
Drinking Water, Health Care & BPL Benefits to Kolam Tribals heldup for want of timely support from Mantralaya :
1. Officials expressed inability due to limitations on their part.
PIL Petitioner to raise all issues of plights of Tribals and lack of support from Government before High Court on 29th March, 2007 Hearing :
NAGPUR, DATED 21st March, Wednesday :
The Joint Meeting organized by the State Government after the Orders of Nagpur Bench of Mumbai High Court in PIL pertaining to most serious issues of Starvation & Malnutrition Deaths of Kolam Tribals in Yavatmal District, has witnessed Government Apathy & lack of timely support from Mantralaya to address the various issues involving Right to Food, Shelter ? Gharkul, Health Care, Education, Drinking Water, etc. to be made available to the distressed Tribals family in the Yavatmal District by the Ground Level Administration in solving the issues as the Officials expressed their limitations in speedy implementing the Tribal Schemes for want of budgetary supports and approvals of the State Government.
The meeting was held at Nagpur Yesterday on 20th March, 2007 at Divisional Commissionerate, under the Chairmanship of Amravati Divisional Commissioner Dr. Sudhir Goyal in which PIL Petitioner Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti President Sh. Kishore Tiwari and Counsels Adv. Firdos Mirza, Adv. Vinod Tiwari, Adv. Ajay Somani, Asst. Govt. Pleaders Smt. Bharti Dangre & Sh. Arvind Mujumdar and host of the Government Officials from Yavatmal District including District Collector Dr. Harshwardhan Kamble, Z.P. CEO Dr. Sikar Pardesi, Additional Tribal Commissioner Sh. Hmant Limaye, Dy. Commissioner - Civil Supply Sh. Hemant Pawar, Dy. Commissioner Sh. Jaywant Choudhari, I.D.T.P. Project Officer Sh. S.N.Saidane, Dr. Rathod (District Health Officer), Dy. Director of Health Services of Akola and other Officials of Tribals Development and District Administration attended the emergent meeting organized pursuant to the Orders of Hon'ble High Court which is hearing the PIL filled by Petitioner Sh. Kishore Tiwari in the year 2003, in the wake of untimely, sudden starvation deaths of 52 Kolam Tribals which rocked entire nation in the year 2003.
In the meeting, the Officials submitted detailed reports based upon the Action Taken Report submitted by the State Government in the High Court alongwith the Affidavit on various aspects pertaining to issues of Right to Food, Shelter, Health-Care, Drinking Water, Education of the deprived Tribals in Yavatmal District.
It may be recalled that the report of High Power Committee appointed by the Hon'ble High Court had pointed out serious issues pertaining to Poor Health-Care, Contaminated & Poisonous Drinking Water, poor conditions of Ashram Schools run by Politicians, short coming in BPL Schemes and denial of benefits to the poor & innocent tribals families residing in 710 villages of tribals belts of Yavatmal Districts. Upon perusal of the report and on the request of PIL Petitioner, the High Court had ordered State Government to take immediate steps and submit Action Taken Report on the serious points raised by the High Power Committee headed by the Divisional Commissioner, Amravati in which Top IAS Officials where the Members of the said fact finding committee who all are the part of administration governing the control of various schemes. But in the joint meeting, officials express their limitations in solving various burning problems of the Tribals inspite of knowing fully well, as they lack in getting timely support from the State Government at Mantralaya even after their repeated efforts.
The joint meeting was shocked to note that many of the villages are forced to drink fluoride contaminated and poisonous drinking water, non availability of Doctors in Tribals area, miserable conditions of shelter and housing, mis-managed Ashram Schools run by the Politicians, non inclusion of illegible families in BPL List due to delay in finalization of BPL list at Mantralaya level, guaranteed employment to the Tribals, etc.
The Petitioners counsel Adv. Firdos Mirza and Adv. Vinod Tiwari raised various short comings in the report and traced to record the same in the Minutes of meeting so that it can be pointed out before the Hon'ble High Court for passing appropriate orders / directions to the State Government in light of urgent needs for protection of deprived Tribal families whose fundamental Rights to Live & Liberty is infringed due to negligence of State Government as the Tribals have been denied Right to Food, Shelter, Health ? Care, Drinking Water & Education inspite of the directions from the Hon'ble High Court.
The joint meeting was conducted in a very cordial and non - adversial manner, in which officials expressed their serious concern towards the implementation of various schemes for the Tribals but due to limitations of timely support from Mantralaya, the results expected have not been seen effectively, even after four years of continued efforts of the District Administration. The Petitioner was very critical upon the lack of support from State Government and its apathy towards the burning issues of the Tribals in Yavatmal district for which the Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti is fighting continuously since last Seven Years.
As ordered by the Hon'ble High Court, the report of the Joint Meeting alongwith the Minutes will be placed before the Hon'ble High Court on the next date of hearing on 29th March, 2007.
Nagarjuna
Indian Food Policy
www.foodpolicy.in
www.worldfoodpolicy.org
Email : info@foodpolicy.in
http://janjati.blogspot.com/
Maharshtra Onions and Bureaucrats
The real reasons for Maharashtra government and politicians apathy towards starvation deaths of Maharashtra KOLAM tribals are being revealed now like the skins of the Maharashtra Onion. One by one the Maharashtra onion peels are coming off :
PIL ON STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS OF KOLAM TRIBALS :
STATE GOVERNMENT'S APATHY TOWARDS SOLVING THE BURNING ISSUES OF TRIBALS SURFACED IN JOINT MEETING :
Drinking Water, Health Care & BPL Benefits to Kolam Tribals heldup for want of timely support from Mantralaya :
1. Officials expressed inability due to limitations on their part.
PIL Petitioner to raise all issues of plights of Tribals and lack of support from Government before High Court on 29th March, 2007 Hearing :
NAGPUR, DATED 21st March, Wednesday :
The Joint Meeting organized by the State Government after the Orders of Nagpur Bench of Mumbai High Court in PIL pertaining to most serious issues of Starvation & Malnutrition Deaths of Kolam Tribals in Yavatmal District, has witnessed Government Apathy & lack of timely support from Mantralaya to address the various issues involving Right to Food, Shelter ? Gharkul, Health Care, Education, Drinking Water, etc. to be made available to the distressed Tribals family in the Yavatmal District by the Ground Level Administration in solving the issues as the Officials expressed their limitations in speedy implementing the Tribal Schemes for want of budgetary supports and approvals of the State Government.
The meeting was held at Nagpur Yesterday on 20th March, 2007 at Divisional Commissionerate, under the Chairmanship of Amravati Divisional Commissioner Dr. Sudhir Goyal in which PIL Petitioner Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti President Sh. Kishore Tiwari and Counsels Adv. Firdos Mirza, Adv. Vinod Tiwari, Adv. Ajay Somani, Asst. Govt. Pleaders Smt. Bharti Dangre & Sh. Arvind Mujumdar and host of the Government Officials from Yavatmal District including District Collector Dr. Harshwardhan Kamble, Z.P. CEO Dr. Sikar Pardesi, Additional Tribal Commissioner Sh. Hmant Limaye, Dy. Commissioner - Civil Supply Sh. Hemant Pawar, Dy. Commissioner Sh. Jaywant Choudhari, I.D.T.P. Project Officer Sh. S.N.Saidane, Dr. Rathod (District Health Officer), Dy. Director of Health Services of Akola and other Officials of Tribals Development and District Administration attended the emergent meeting organized pursuant to the Orders of Hon'ble High Court which is hearing the PIL filled by Petitioner Sh. Kishore Tiwari in the year 2003, in the wake of untimely, sudden starvation deaths of 52 Kolam Tribals which rocked entire nation in the year 2003.
In the meeting, the Officials submitted detailed reports based upon the Action Taken Report submitted by the State Government in the High Court alongwith the Affidavit on various aspects pertaining to issues of Right to Food, Shelter, Health-Care, Drinking Water, Education of the deprived Tribals in Yavatmal District.
It may be recalled that the report of High Power Committee appointed by the Hon'ble High Court had pointed out serious issues pertaining to Poor Health-Care, Contaminated & Poisonous Drinking Water, poor conditions of Ashram Schools run by Politicians, short coming in BPL Schemes and denial of benefits to the poor & innocent tribals families residing in 710 villages of tribals belts of Yavatmal Districts. Upon perusal of the report and on the request of PIL Petitioner, the High Court had ordered State Government to take immediate steps and submit Action Taken Report on the serious points raised by the High Power Committee headed by the Divisional Commissioner, Amravati in which Top IAS Officials where the Members of the said fact finding committee who all are the part of administration governing the control of various schemes. But in the joint meeting, officials express their limitations in solving various burning problems of the Tribals inspite of knowing fully well, as they lack in getting timely support from the State Government at Mantralaya even after their repeated efforts.
The joint meeting was shocked to note that many of the villages are forced to drink fluoride contaminated and poisonous drinking water, non availability of Doctors in Tribals area, miserable conditions of shelter and housing, mis-managed Ashram Schools run by the Politicians, non inclusion of illegible families in BPL List due to delay in finalization of BPL list at Mantralaya level, guaranteed employment to the Tribals, etc.
The Petitioners counsel Adv. Firdos Mirza and Adv. Vinod Tiwari raised various short comings in the report and traced to record the same in the Minutes of meeting so that it can be pointed out before the Hon'ble High Court for passing appropriate orders / directions to the State Government in light of urgent needs for protection of deprived Tribal families whose fundamental Rights to Live & Liberty is infringed due to negligence of State Government as the Tribals have been denied Right to Food, Shelter, Health ? Care, Drinking Water & Education inspite of the directions from the Hon'ble High Court.
The joint meeting was conducted in a very cordial and non - adversial manner, in which officials expressed their serious concern towards the implementation of various schemes for the Tribals but due to limitations of timely support from Mantralaya, the results expected have not been seen effectively, even after four years of continued efforts of the District Administration. The Petitioner was very critical upon the lack of support from State Government and its apathy towards the burning issues of the Tribals in Yavatmal district for which the Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti is fighting continuously since last Seven Years.
As ordered by the Hon'ble High Court, the report of the Joint Meeting alongwith the Minutes will be placed before the Hon'ble High Court on the next date of hearing on 29th March, 2007.
Nagarjuna
Indian Food Policy
www.foodpolicy.in
www.worldfoodpolicy.org
Email : info@foodpolicy.in
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Sunday, March 18, 2007
SIX MORE COTTON FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE EVE FARMER’S NEW YEAR “GIDU PADWA”18TH MARCH . 2007 –AID IS MISSING AND DEBT TRAP FARMERS UNDER COTTON CROP
FROM
KISHOR TIWARI
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
SUB- SIX MORE COTTON FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE EVE FARMER’S NEW YEAR “GIDU PADWA”18TH MARCH . 2007 –AID IS MISSING AND DEBT TRAP FARMERS UNDER COTTON CROP FAILURE IN VIDARBHA THIRD YEAR ROW.
Nagpur-19TH MARCH,
Six more suicides reported on the eve farmer’s new year known as “gudi padwa” i.e.18th March., 2007 taking toll to 56 in this month of march as earlier in feb.88 and Jan. 70 farm suicides reported taking total toll to 216 2007 which all most double in comparison same period in 2006 this followed by the more than 1400 farm suicides in year 2006 as per govt. of Maharashtra official figure.
Names of the farmers who committed suicides on 18th march,2007 are two from yavatmal and washim distt. And on from wardha not buldhana district each, they are .
1.BHAGWAN DOEJAD OF VILLAGE DEVELGOAN-MAI IN BULDHANA
2.GAJANAN KALE OF MANGURALA (KURD) IN YAVATMAL
3.KAPIL BHAWARE OF VIALLAGE TAD SAWALI IN YAVATMAL
4.AMBADAS MORKAR OF DHAMANI IN WASHIM DISTRCIT
5.BABRAO MATARMARE OF VILLAGE MOHARI IN WASHIM
6.RAVINDRA NAWATHE OF VIALLGE WANI IN WARDHA
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti reported today on19TH MARCH.,2007.
Vidarbha agrarian crisis has resulted in mass farm suicides due to continuous distress caused as per govt. Of maharashtra large scale hundreds survey and study reports that it's due to debt, crop failure and complete failure of health care, food care and education and employment support systems in rural vidarbha but all relief aid declared by Indian govt. And local govt. Failed to slow down theses suicides, kishor tiwari added.
Huge cotton crop failure in vidarbha third year in row,
As per Govt. of official figure total procurement of cotton in Maharashtra is around 10 million quintal as against toll claim of 35 million quintal out of which state govt. Cotton federation procured around 3.5. Million quintals at rate of rs.1780/- per quintal in an average where central govt. Agency CCI( cotton corporation. of India) procured 1.5 million remaining 5 million by the private traders that at the throwaway prices less than MSP( minimum purchase price).
2004-2005-18 MILLION QUINTAL
2005-2006-14 MILLION QUINTAL
2006-2007-10 MILLION QUINTAL
Cotton production has reported and it is reported by maharashtra govt. That too more over from last two year maharashtra govt. Has been announcing the compensation to cotton growers which is peanut resulting more distress and suicides. The very high cost and high risk cotton farming has made whole vidarbha economy in doll drum and complete collapse of economy asking more and more farmers to kill themselves., tiwari informed.
BT.COTTON FAILED IN VIDARBHA IN LARGE SCALE
Bt. cotton permitted by state govt. for mass trail in vidarbha has been disaster ,it's high cost and very low output made farmer economy more worst
vidarbha jan andolan samiti(VJAS) has been demanding that to save 1.7 million cotton farmers who deep distress to provide complete debt waiver and cotton crop protection and all front ,ban on chemical farming along with restoration of health care, education, rural employment and food security to rural masses of vidarbha. "nobody is even ready to give serious consideration our demands, that very unfortunate" kishor tiwari told "how many more farm suicides govt. need to act?" tiwari asked.
===============================================================
Thanking you,
Yours faith fully
Kishor tiwari
Vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-094222108846
KISHOR TIWARI
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
SUB- SIX MORE COTTON FARMERS SUICIDES ON THE EVE FARMER’S NEW YEAR “GIDU PADWA”18TH MARCH . 2007 –AID IS MISSING AND DEBT TRAP FARMERS UNDER COTTON CROP FAILURE IN VIDARBHA THIRD YEAR ROW.
Nagpur-19TH MARCH,
Six more suicides reported on the eve farmer’s new year known as “gudi padwa” i.e.18th March., 2007 taking toll to 56 in this month of march as earlier in feb.88 and Jan. 70 farm suicides reported taking total toll to 216 2007 which all most double in comparison same period in 2006 this followed by the more than 1400 farm suicides in year 2006 as per govt. of Maharashtra official figure.
Names of the farmers who committed suicides on 18th march,2007 are two from yavatmal and washim distt. And on from wardha not buldhana district each, they are .
1.BHAGWAN DOEJAD OF VILLAGE DEVELGOAN-MAI IN BULDHANA
2.GAJANAN KALE OF MANGURALA (KURD) IN YAVATMAL
3.KAPIL BHAWARE OF VIALLAGE TAD SAWALI IN YAVATMAL
4.AMBADAS MORKAR OF DHAMANI IN WASHIM DISTRCIT
5.BABRAO MATARMARE OF VILLAGE MOHARI IN WASHIM
6.RAVINDRA NAWATHE OF VIALLGE WANI IN WARDHA
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti reported today on19TH MARCH.,2007.
Vidarbha agrarian crisis has resulted in mass farm suicides due to continuous distress caused as per govt. Of maharashtra large scale hundreds survey and study reports that it's due to debt, crop failure and complete failure of health care, food care and education and employment support systems in rural vidarbha but all relief aid declared by Indian govt. And local govt. Failed to slow down theses suicides, kishor tiwari added.
Huge cotton crop failure in vidarbha third year in row,
As per Govt. of official figure total procurement of cotton in Maharashtra is around 10 million quintal as against toll claim of 35 million quintal out of which state govt. Cotton federation procured around 3.5. Million quintals at rate of rs.1780/- per quintal in an average where central govt. Agency CCI( cotton corporation. of India) procured 1.5 million remaining 5 million by the private traders that at the throwaway prices less than MSP( minimum purchase price).
2004-2005-18 MILLION QUINTAL
2005-2006-14 MILLION QUINTAL
2006-2007-10 MILLION QUINTAL
Cotton production has reported and it is reported by maharashtra govt. That too more over from last two year maharashtra govt. Has been announcing the compensation to cotton growers which is peanut resulting more distress and suicides. The very high cost and high risk cotton farming has made whole vidarbha economy in doll drum and complete collapse of economy asking more and more farmers to kill themselves., tiwari informed.
BT.COTTON FAILED IN VIDARBHA IN LARGE SCALE
Bt. cotton permitted by state govt. for mass trail in vidarbha has been disaster ,it's high cost and very low output made farmer economy more worst
vidarbha jan andolan samiti(VJAS) has been demanding that to save 1.7 million cotton farmers who deep distress to provide complete debt waiver and cotton crop protection and all front ,ban on chemical farming along with restoration of health care, education, rural employment and food security to rural masses of vidarbha. "nobody is even ready to give serious consideration our demands, that very unfortunate" kishor tiwari told "how many more farm suicides govt. need to act?" tiwari asked.
===============================================================
Thanking you,
Yours faith fully
Kishor tiwari
Vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-094222108846
Friday, March 16, 2007
German Women Join Hands With Vidarbha Widows
German Women Join Hands With Vidarbha Widows
German Women Join Hands With Vidarbha Widows
The readers of a leading German ( Deutsche )news paper, "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" have given relief aid to Vidarbha Farm Widows.
They were moved by Karin Steinberger's article based on the very hard struggle of farm widows, after the suicide of their farmer husbands, when local Maharashtra govt. turned blind eye towards the plights of these widows.
This amount was collected by news paper "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" was transferred to INDENHILFE, an NGO working for the Indian people.
Their Kolkatta base office is arranging a function for Relief Aid disbursement at Pandharkawada in Yavatmal district of Vidarbha, Maharashtra in India on 17th March. INDIENHILIFE office in charge, Kumar Roy and Shibani Bhattacharya have been touring in rural part of Vidarbha to indemnify the widows who are working hard to save the surviving family from agrarian crisis.
Kari Steinberger is with this news paper "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" since 2000, writing features from all over the world but most of stories are from rural parts of India. This article was based on the hardships faced by Farm Widows of Vidarbha and their "struggle to remain live", without any meaningful and coordinated government aid.
It was published in 2006, has been moved by the thousand of readers in Germany but relief aid programme has just coincidently matched with timing when one of Indian news challenge has open campaign to run fabricated stories of Farm widows and evoked very strong response from all over the world.
This German relief aid distribution programme, will boost morale of these farm widows, at last, after the sheer apathy of local Congress and NCP government, and top local bureaucrats of Maharashtra, who are more interested in book keeping and making media statements, debating the reasons for farm suicides in cotton belt of Vidarbha.
Nagarjuna
German Women Join Hands With Vidarbha Widows
The readers of a leading German ( Deutsche )news paper, "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" have given relief aid to Vidarbha Farm Widows.
They were moved by Karin Steinberger's article based on the very hard struggle of farm widows, after the suicide of their farmer husbands, when local Maharashtra govt. turned blind eye towards the plights of these widows.
This amount was collected by news paper "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" was transferred to INDENHILFE, an NGO working for the Indian people.
Their Kolkatta base office is arranging a function for Relief Aid disbursement at Pandharkawada in Yavatmal district of Vidarbha, Maharashtra in India on 17th March. INDIENHILIFE office in charge, Kumar Roy and Shibani Bhattacharya have been touring in rural part of Vidarbha to indemnify the widows who are working hard to save the surviving family from agrarian crisis.
Kari Steinberger is with this news paper "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" since 2000, writing features from all over the world but most of stories are from rural parts of India. This article was based on the hardships faced by Farm Widows of Vidarbha and their "struggle to remain live", without any meaningful and coordinated government aid.
It was published in 2006, has been moved by the thousand of readers in Germany but relief aid programme has just coincidently matched with timing when one of Indian news challenge has open campaign to run fabricated stories of Farm widows and evoked very strong response from all over the world.
This German relief aid distribution programme, will boost morale of these farm widows, at last, after the sheer apathy of local Congress and NCP government, and top local bureaucrats of Maharashtra, who are more interested in book keeping and making media statements, debating the reasons for farm suicides in cotton belt of Vidarbha.
Nagarjuna
Friday, March 16, 2007
Sreenivasan Jain Defends story on farm widows-VJAS responds as very unfortunate
Sreenivasan Jain Defends NDTV story on farm widows
VJAS responds as it's very unfortunate
Dear Sreenivasan,
Most respected sir,
Receipt of your e-mail(produced below) is kindly acknowlged with responce to earlier e-mail with referance to your untrue story of vidarbha farm widows forced in to prostitution(both reporduced below.
I have written your e-mail after due varification with our amravati farm activist and having indentified ladies used to show fabricated untrue story and to update you and all world regarding the facts but your reply is much more shocking as you are till kept under dark by feeding false information .
I am indebted for your remarks that you used to certify my work
but I promise to bring the fact before the world thorugh your NDTVonly as I know there are till prople with wisdom and reason are working in NDTV and they are closely monitoring your unwarnted misuse of NDTV setup and time will prove who is wrong and who is correct.
The shameful defaming of 3500 farm widows with a cooked-up story is not a private matter between you and me. It is humiliating and sensationalises something false for wrong purposes. You story was public, so also my letter. This is a public issue, the shame and hurt done to thousands of farm widows who are struggling so bravely to keep their farms running and families from starving. Please read the letter I sent you properly. It is clearly an open, public letter, with the web link to the Andolan's blog clearly given there. So you may have wished it was a private letter but it was never so.
We are fighting for Vidharba's farmers and when NDTV did stories highlighting their plight we have helped you, given you support and assistance. I wrote in my letter praising ndtv for that work and also that "we respect ndtv and also sreenivasan jain" -- but that this particular story is not true. So where have we maligned you? You could even now order an inquiry into the footage of this story and how real were those 'interviews.' It was this story not our claims that was "completely irresponsible." As an andolan defending those farmers, we would be failing in our duty if we did not respond when such brazen wrong is done to them. Having taken our help so often, now you find we "have little serious concern" for the issues? You seem angry because you feel we have hurt you with "individuals and institiutions we respect." Sreenivasan, please also do respect the struggling farmers widows whom this story has subjected to so much torment and pain? Please also show us some respect, we who have worked here for years and who have helped you.
Let alone respect of the high and mighty, self-respect demands that you inquire into those so-called interviews and see how real they were. Where are those facts you say you are happy to supply? Why not tell the public of Vidharba what those facts are? Respect them also, not just important "individuals and institutions." Your comment that I am doing this in 'petulance' because we, the activists who live and work here, know less about the farm suicides than your reporter from Mumbai, it is so comical that we shall not comment on it. Anyone who knows Vidharba or journalism at all will draw their conclusion on that joke. But on the fabrications made in the story, should I be silent because some reporter of yours wants to win awards with a sensational story?
With deep disappointment
kishor tiwari
vidarbha@gmail.com
===============================================================================================
Dear Kishore,
We at NDTV had wrongly assumed that the mail you had sent out on the Witness episode was only to me. I had called you in response to that mail, and at the end of the conversation we had agreed to disagree, but more importantly, I had corrected you on your completely irresponsible claim that we had 'fabricated' the story , and had offered to supply you with details of the women and villages from where the report was prepared. You showed no real interest. But we now realise that this mail has been sent out to all those on your mailing list, many of whom are known to us and represent individuals and institutions that we respect. To have maligned us amongst this constituency, and to have cast aspersions on our reporting is shocking, especially from someone who claims have had a long association with NDTV. If you had bothered with checking with us first on the facts, we would have been more than happy to supply them. But instead, your mail seems to suggest that you have little serious concern for the issues we raised, more a petulance that we ran a report on an aspect of the suicides that you are unaware of .
With extreme regret,
Vasu
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
TO,
SHRINIVASAN JAIN,
NDTV,MUMBAI.
REF: YOUR AWARD WINING PROGRAMME 'witness' ON VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS.
Respected sir,
I was shocked to see your programme last night witness and could not sleep through out night ,VJAS is only activist group who keeping track farmers suicides and always raising issues of farm widows and updated the whole world regarding plights of widows but your investigative "news item" has been first time information that vidarbha farm widows are forced prostitution.
we respect NDTV nad shrinivasan jain too but ,YOUR THIS NEWS ITEM IS NOT TRUE ,it is carrying very wrong impression regarding more than 3500 farm widows who are working hard against all odds and I have not seen single case of this kind till today .the moral and support theses farm widows are the real spirit of us to work against the all odds in these days of distress .
Here web text and link has been reproduced for my all inter national and national regular mail recipient as I have receiving the calls through out day to know the fact. cases we tracked needs to be probed further but generalisation of issue makes question mark to character of all farm widows .this is very critical issue as whole focus has been vidarbha farm widows moreover projecting vidarbha as new hub for export of farm widows for national prostitution ,VASU IS IT FAIR REPORTING SIR?
NDTV has been reporting vidarbha farm crisis since 1998 and first case of vidarbha cotton framers suicide of RAMDAS AMBARWAR of village taleng takli in yavatmal was reported by NDTV on 1 HOUR SLOT of star news forced Maharashtra chief minister manohar joshi that visited all houses of farm widows and gave the compensation.
VASU you are the witness of all developments but your own 'WITNESS' programme has put all activist involved in this agrarian crisis in fix.if your witness is true that it's moral binding for all of us to commit suicide .this is insult humanity it's matter of national shame.
I respect NDTV and request you to arrange detail probe on news item feeds used for this witness as it's seems to be fabricated one and more extensive stories on struggle of farm widows as damage control exercise .we never expected the words and draft used to show this news item,I PAINED AS EVERY NEW DAY IS COMING NEW SAGA SUICIDE AND NEW VERSION FARM WIDOWS DISPARATE ATTEMPTS OF SERVILE.
I FEEL NOBODY IS GIVING ANY ATTENTION TO THIS SERIOUS ISSUE ,NOW VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS IS FOR "SPECIAL NEWS ITEM" .
MAY GOD BLESS VIDARBHA FARMERS AND FARM WIDOWS.
regards,
I pained,
thanking
yours faithfully
kishor tiwari
Sreenivasan Jain Defends story on farm widows-VJAS responds as very unfortunate
Sreenivasan Jain Defends NDTV story on farm widows
VJAS responds as it's very unfortunate
Dear Sreenivasan,
Most respected sir,
Receipt of your e-mail(produced below) is kindly acknowlged with responce to earlier e-mail with referance to your untrue story of vidarbha farm widows forced in to prostitution(both reporduced below.
I have written your e-mail after due varification with our amravati farm activist and having indentified ladies used to show fabricated untrue story and to update you and all world regarding the facts but your reply is much more shocking as you are till kept under dark by feeding false information .
I am indebted for your remarks that you used to certify my work
but I promise to bring the fact before the world thorugh your NDTVonly as I know there are till prople with wisdom and reason are working in NDTV and they are closely monitoring your unwarnted misuse of NDTV setup and time will prove who is wrong and who is correct.
The shameful defaming of 3500 farm widows with a cooked-up story is not a private matter between you and me. It is humiliating and sensationalises something false for wrong purposes. You story was public, so also my letter. This is a public issue, the shame and hurt done to thousands of farm widows who are struggling so bravely to keep their farms running and families from starving. Please read the letter I sent you properly. It is clearly an open, public letter, with the web link to the Andolan's blog clearly given there. So you may have wished it was a private letter but it was never so.
We are fighting for Vidharba's farmers and when NDTV did stories highlighting their plight we have helped you, given you support and assistance. I wrote in my letter praising ndtv for that work and also that "we respect ndtv and also sreenivasan jain" -- but that this particular story is not true. So where have we maligned you? You could even now order an inquiry into the footage of this story and how real were those 'interviews.' It was this story not our claims that was "completely irresponsible." As an andolan defending those farmers, we would be failing in our duty if we did not respond when such brazen wrong is done to them. Having taken our help so often, now you find we "have little serious concern" for the issues? You seem angry because you feel we have hurt you with "individuals and institiutions we respect." Sreenivasan, please also do respect the struggling farmers widows whom this story has subjected to so much torment and pain? Please also show us some respect, we who have worked here for years and who have helped you.
Let alone respect of the high and mighty, self-respect demands that you inquire into those so-called interviews and see how real they were. Where are those facts you say you are happy to supply? Why not tell the public of Vidharba what those facts are? Respect them also, not just important "individuals and institutions." Your comment that I am doing this in 'petulance' because we, the activists who live and work here, know less about the farm suicides than your reporter from Mumbai, it is so comical that we shall not comment on it. Anyone who knows Vidharba or journalism at all will draw their conclusion on that joke. But on the fabrications made in the story, should I be silent because some reporter of yours wants to win awards with a sensational story?
With deep disappointment
kishor tiwari
vidarbha@gmail.com
===============================================================================================
Dear Kishore,
We at NDTV had wrongly assumed that the mail you had sent out on the Witness episode was only to me. I had called you in response to that mail, and at the end of the conversation we had agreed to disagree, but more importantly, I had corrected you on your completely irresponsible claim that we had 'fabricated' the story , and had offered to supply you with details of the women and villages from where the report was prepared. You showed no real interest. But we now realise that this mail has been sent out to all those on your mailing list, many of whom are known to us and represent individuals and institutions that we respect. To have maligned us amongst this constituency, and to have cast aspersions on our reporting is shocking, especially from someone who claims have had a long association with NDTV. If you had bothered with checking with us first on the facts, we would have been more than happy to supply them. But instead, your mail seems to suggest that you have little serious concern for the issues we raised, more a petulance that we ran a report on an aspect of the suicides that you are unaware of .
With extreme regret,
Vasu
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
TO,
SHRINIVASAN JAIN,
NDTV,MUMBAI.
REF: YOUR AWARD WINING PROGRAMME 'witness' ON VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS.
Respected sir,
I was shocked to see your programme last night witness and could not sleep through out night ,VJAS is only activist group who keeping track farmers suicides and always raising issues of farm widows and updated the whole world regarding plights of widows but your investigative "news item" has been first time information that vidarbha farm widows are forced prostitution.
we respect NDTV nad shrinivasan jain too but ,YOUR THIS NEWS ITEM IS NOT TRUE ,it is carrying very wrong impression regarding more than 3500 farm widows who are working hard against all odds and I have not seen single case of this kind till today .the moral and support theses farm widows are the real spirit of us to work against the all odds in these days of distress .
Here web text and link has been reproduced for my all inter national and national regular mail recipient as I have receiving the calls through out day to know the fact. cases we tracked needs to be probed further but generalisation of issue makes question mark to character of all farm widows .this is very critical issue as whole focus has been vidarbha farm widows moreover projecting vidarbha as new hub for export of farm widows for national prostitution ,VASU IS IT FAIR REPORTING SIR?
NDTV has been reporting vidarbha farm crisis since 1998 and first case of vidarbha cotton framers suicide of RAMDAS AMBARWAR of village taleng takli in yavatmal was reported by NDTV on 1 HOUR SLOT of star news forced Maharashtra chief minister manohar joshi that visited all houses of farm widows and gave the compensation.
VASU you are the witness of all developments but your own 'WITNESS' programme has put all activist involved in this agrarian crisis in fix.if your witness is true that it's moral binding for all of us to commit suicide .this is insult humanity it's matter of national shame.
I respect NDTV and request you to arrange detail probe on news item feeds used for this witness as it's seems to be fabricated one and more extensive stories on struggle of farm widows as damage control exercise .we never expected the words and draft used to show this news item,I PAINED AS EVERY NEW DAY IS COMING NEW SAGA SUICIDE AND NEW VERSION FARM WIDOWS DISPARATE ATTEMPTS OF SERVILE.
I FEEL NOBODY IS GIVING ANY ATTENTION TO THIS SERIOUS ISSUE ,NOW VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS IS FOR "SPECIAL NEWS ITEM" .
MAY GOD BLESS VIDARBHA FARMERS AND FARM WIDOWS.
regards,
I pained,
thanking
yours faithfully
kishor tiwari
Thursday, March 15, 2007
VJAS termed Maharashtra CM move seeks spiritual help to stop vidarbha suicides as failure of civil administration
VJAS termed Maharashtra CM move seeks spiritual help to stop vidarbha suicides as failure of civil administration
Friday, March 16, 2007 (NAGPUR):
Vidarbha Jan Andolan samiti to termed Maharashtra chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh move to seek spiritual help
Facing severe criticism over farmer suicides in Maharashtra,as a popular spiritual leader from the south, Mata Amritanandamayi, visited the CM on Thursday to discuss the issue of farmer suicides as failure of administration to tackle farmers suicide issue.Spiritual teaching is must but maharashtra chief minister vilasrao deshmukh not for vidarbha farmers who healthy tradition of spiritual binding and this is not answers to food starvation and economical problems of cotton farmers who are being forced to commit suicide due the wrong policies of state ,kishor tiwari farm activist of VJAS informed today .
VJAS has thanked popular spiritual leader from the south, Mata Amritanandamayi for pledging Rs 200 crore for poor farmers across the Vidarbha, which is also to be used for the spiritual guidance and rehabilitation of farmers in the suicide-prone Vidarbha region but has requested not handover to chief minister of maharashtra who has record land garbing and fund garbing before as the vidarbha region is yet to receive funds promised by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
VJAS has also urged to have physiological check up of chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh along with the Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Patangrao Kadam and state Chief Secretary DK Shankaran because of their bankruptcy to address agrarian crisis as this is not the first time that Vilasrao Deshmukh has turned to spirituality in his search for the ideal solution to the farmer suicides,.The chief minister had earlier sought help from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's Art of Living Foundation ,Bhyuji Maharaj of indore as well alongwith with lot of jagran yatras,kishor tiwari added.
VJAS also condemned Chief Minister stand on the Congress Party's win in the recent Zilla Parishad and Panchayat elections has led them to argue that the reason behind the farmer suicide is not dissatisfaction with the government. is it recent win in zillaparishad free licence for chief minister to kill vidarbha farmers,kishor tiwari asked.the reasons of distress are known to govt.and economical solution are with them then what is drama when administration failed to slow down vidarbha farmer suicides even after announcement of rs.3750 core package,now it's time for to sit together and work out relief plan that will provide health care ,proper credit,rural employment and support to distress farm families at ground level,kishor tiwari added.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
pl arrange to publish this press note
kishor tiwari
vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
Friday, March 16, 2007 (NAGPUR):
Vidarbha Jan Andolan samiti to termed Maharashtra chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh move to seek spiritual help
Facing severe criticism over farmer suicides in Maharashtra,as a popular spiritual leader from the south, Mata Amritanandamayi, visited the CM on Thursday to discuss the issue of farmer suicides as failure of administration to tackle farmers suicide issue.Spiritual teaching is must but maharashtra chief minister vilasrao deshmukh not for vidarbha farmers who healthy tradition of spiritual binding and this is not answers to food starvation and economical problems of cotton farmers who are being forced to commit suicide due the wrong policies of state ,kishor tiwari farm activist of VJAS informed today .
VJAS has thanked popular spiritual leader from the south, Mata Amritanandamayi for pledging Rs 200 crore for poor farmers across the Vidarbha, which is also to be used for the spiritual guidance and rehabilitation of farmers in the suicide-prone Vidarbha region but has requested not handover to chief minister of maharashtra who has record land garbing and fund garbing before as the vidarbha region is yet to receive funds promised by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
VJAS has also urged to have physiological check up of chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh along with the Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Patangrao Kadam and state Chief Secretary DK Shankaran because of their bankruptcy to address agrarian crisis as this is not the first time that Vilasrao Deshmukh has turned to spirituality in his search for the ideal solution to the farmer suicides,.The chief minister had earlier sought help from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's Art of Living Foundation ,Bhyuji Maharaj of indore as well alongwith with lot of jagran yatras,kishor tiwari added.
VJAS also condemned Chief Minister stand on the Congress Party's win in the recent Zilla Parishad and Panchayat elections has led them to argue that the reason behind the farmer suicide is not dissatisfaction with the government. is it recent win in zillaparishad free licence for chief minister to kill vidarbha farmers,kishor tiwari asked.the reasons of distress are known to govt.and economical solution are with them then what is drama when administration failed to slow down vidarbha farmer suicides even after announcement of rs.3750 core package,now it's time for to sit together and work out relief plan that will provide health care ,proper credit,rural employment and support to distress farm families at ground level,kishor tiwari added.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
pl arrange to publish this press note
kishor tiwari
vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
PIL ON STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS OF KOLAM TRIBALS
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
11, Trisaran Society, In front of Somalwar School, Khamla, Nagpur – 440 025
Tel No. (0712) 2282457 Mob No. 9422108846 / 9371137653 / 9373121947
(Regd Office : At Post : Pandharkawada-445 302, Tq : Kelapur, Distt : Yavatmal)
Ref No. VJAS/PIL-HC/Kolam Deaths/175/2007, March 14, 2007
PRESS NOTE – URGENT
PIL ON STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS OF KOLAM TRIBALS :
MEETING FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTION TAKEN REPORT FOR HIGH-COURT ORDERS STATE GOVERNMENT TO HOLD URGENT THE BENEFIT OF POOR TRIBALS FACING STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS IN YAVATMAL DISTRICT OF VIDARBHA REGION.
NAGPUR, DATED 14th March, 2007
Nagpur Bench of Mumbai High-Court has ordered the State Government to direct Amravati Divisional Commissioner to hold urgent meeting along with the PIL Petitioner Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti President Shri Kishore Tiwari & all concerned officials of the State Government to implement the Action Taken Report on the Kolam Tribals Starvation & Malnutrition Deaths in Yavatmal District of Vidarbha Region, which is most affected due to non implementation of various schemes for the benefit of poor tribal families residing in the 710 tribal villages of Nine Talukas of Yavatmal District for protection of fundamental rights of Food, Shelter, Education, Health and Drinking Water to be made available to the tribals.
The Division Bench of the High-Court at Nagpur consisting of Justice Shri Ambadas H. Joshi and Justice Shri R.C. Chavan while hearing the Public Interest Writ Petition filed by Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti President Shri Kishore Tiwari in the matter of infringement of fundamental rights to Live & Life of the poor tribal families in the Tribal Belt of Yavatmal District, passed the above order. The tribal families who all are deprived of basic means of life such as food, shelter, education, health & drinking water due to the apathy of the State Government in implementation the various welfare schemes, even after the report from the High Power Committee appointed by the High-Court in the PIL.
It may be recalled that the PIL Writ Petition was filed way back in May 2003 when the 52 Kolam Tribals died of starvation in Yavatmal District. The High-Court Division Bench at Nagpur had appointed various committees from time to time during the period of last 3 ½ years and finally had directed the State Government to submit Action Taken Report.
Today when the matter come up for hearing the Petitioner’s Counsel Adv. Firdos Mirza, Adv. Vinod Tiwari and Adv. Ajay Somani pointed out various shortcomings in the implementation of various schemes for the tribals.
After hearing both the sides, High-Court ordered State Government to direct Divisional Commissioner at Amravati to hold urgent meeting of all officials concerned along with the Petitioner and his Counsels in the matter of implementation of the Action Taken Report for the welfare of the poor tribal families residing in the Nine tribal Talukas of Yavatmal District.
The Minutes of the Meeting need to be submitted within 10 days of the Order and next date of hearing has been fixed for 29th March 2007, the High-Court Ordered.
Please arrange to release / publish the above Press Note & oblige.
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully,
Santosh Netam
Publicity Incharge,
Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti
11, Trisaran Society, In front of Somalwar School, Khamla, Nagpur – 440 025
Tel No. (0712) 2282457 Mob No. 9422108846 / 9371137653 / 9373121947
(Regd Office : At Post : Pandharkawada-445 302, Tq : Kelapur, Distt : Yavatmal)
Ref No. VJAS/PIL-HC/Kolam Deaths/175/2007, March 14, 2007
PRESS NOTE – URGENT
PIL ON STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS OF KOLAM TRIBALS :
MEETING FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTION TAKEN REPORT FOR HIGH-COURT ORDERS STATE GOVERNMENT TO HOLD URGENT THE BENEFIT OF POOR TRIBALS FACING STARVATION & MALNUTRITION DEATHS IN YAVATMAL DISTRICT OF VIDARBHA REGION.
NAGPUR, DATED 14th March, 2007
Nagpur Bench of Mumbai High-Court has ordered the State Government to direct Amravati Divisional Commissioner to hold urgent meeting along with the PIL Petitioner Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti President Shri Kishore Tiwari & all concerned officials of the State Government to implement the Action Taken Report on the Kolam Tribals Starvation & Malnutrition Deaths in Yavatmal District of Vidarbha Region, which is most affected due to non implementation of various schemes for the benefit of poor tribal families residing in the 710 tribal villages of Nine Talukas of Yavatmal District for protection of fundamental rights of Food, Shelter, Education, Health and Drinking Water to be made available to the tribals.
The Division Bench of the High-Court at Nagpur consisting of Justice Shri Ambadas H. Joshi and Justice Shri R.C. Chavan while hearing the Public Interest Writ Petition filed by Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti President Shri Kishore Tiwari in the matter of infringement of fundamental rights to Live & Life of the poor tribal families in the Tribal Belt of Yavatmal District, passed the above order. The tribal families who all are deprived of basic means of life such as food, shelter, education, health & drinking water due to the apathy of the State Government in implementation the various welfare schemes, even after the report from the High Power Committee appointed by the High-Court in the PIL.
It may be recalled that the PIL Writ Petition was filed way back in May 2003 when the 52 Kolam Tribals died of starvation in Yavatmal District. The High-Court Division Bench at Nagpur had appointed various committees from time to time during the period of last 3 ½ years and finally had directed the State Government to submit Action Taken Report.
Today when the matter come up for hearing the Petitioner’s Counsel Adv. Firdos Mirza, Adv. Vinod Tiwari and Adv. Ajay Somani pointed out various shortcomings in the implementation of various schemes for the tribals.
After hearing both the sides, High-Court ordered State Government to direct Divisional Commissioner at Amravati to hold urgent meeting of all officials concerned along with the Petitioner and his Counsels in the matter of implementation of the Action Taken Report for the welfare of the poor tribal families residing in the Nine tribal Talukas of Yavatmal District.
The Minutes of the Meeting need to be submitted within 10 days of the Order and next date of hearing has been fixed for 29th March 2007, the High-Court Ordered.
Please arrange to release / publish the above Press Note & oblige.
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully,
Santosh Netam
Publicity Incharge,
Vidarbha JanAndolan Samiti
“Vidarbha Widows Forced Into Prostitution” – isn’t true
“Vidarbha Widows Forced Into Prostitution” – isn’t true
http://mynews.in/newsdetail.aspx?news_id=456
http://mynews.in/newsdetail.aspx?news_id=456
| kishor Tiwari | |
| Nagpur | |
| “Vidarbha Widows Forced Into Prostitution” – isn’t true | |
| “Vidarbha Widows Forced Into Prostitution” – isn’t true (Distress of a Citizen Journalist on the news item – Witness broadcast on NDTV exclusively expressed through our website . Here is what our citizen journalist has to say on it) Thousands of people concerned with on – going crises in Vidharbha were shocked to see the programme – Witness (Broadcast on NDTV) and could not sleep through out night. There are many social groups who are selflessly concerned with issues related to farmers (and their widows) at Vidarbha committed to uplift the condition of such deprived and ill-feted ones. A program broadcast on NDTV has caused all a deep pain. It suggests that the widows of the farmers (who have committed suicides) are compelled to enter into prostitution. It is quiet disheartening for more than 3500 farm widows who are working hard against all odds to lead a good life. I being a member of a social group (VJAS - Vidarbha Jan Aandolan Samiti) have closely observed that they toil real hard to earn a living for their families. Their moral support and strong will to survive is what keeps the welfare work at Vidarbha moving. The spirit and courage reflected by these widows in order to live a blameless and morally correct life is commendable. But the program aired through NDTV, poses a question mark on to the character of all farm widows .Moreover, projecting Vidarbha as an emerging hub for prostitution is not what may be called a fair reporting. It must be the responsibility of NDTV to further probe on this news item as it seems to be fabricated. Instead of sensationalizing this grave issue, the time is to accolade the farm widows as every day in Vidarbha comes with a new story of farmers’ suicide or their painful trauma for survival. May God bless Vidarbha farmers and their widows | |
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution- This is not true vasu ,by now you are asking us to commit suicide
TO,
SHRINIVASAN JAIN,
NDTV,MUMBAI.
REF: YOUR AWARD WINING PROGRAMME 'witness' ON VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS.
Respected sir,
I was shocked to see your programme last night witness and could not sleep through out night ,VJAS is only activist group who keeping track farmers suicides and always raising issues of farm widows and updated the whole world regarding plights of widows but your investigative "news item" has been first time information that vidarbha farm widows are forced prostitution.
we respect NDTV nad shrinivasan jain too but ,YOUR THIS NEWS ITEM IS NOT TRUE ,it is carrying very wrong impression regarding more than 3500 farm widows who are working hard against all odds and I have not seen single case of this kind till today .the moral and support theses farm widows are the real spirit of us to work against the all odds in these days of distress .
Here web text and link has been reproduced for my all inter national and national regular mail recipient as I have receiving the calls through out day to know the fact. cases we tracked needs to be probed further but generalisation of issue makes question mark to character of all farm widows .this is very critical issue as whole focus has been vidarbha farm widows moreover projecting vidarbha as new hub for export of farm widows for national prostitution ,VASU IS IT FAIR REPORTING SIR?
NDTV has been reporting vidarbha farm crisis since 1998 and first case of vidarbha cotton framers suicide of RAMDAS AMBARWAR of village taleng takli in yavatmal was reported by NDTV on 1 HOUR SLOT of star news forced Maharashtra chief minister manohar joshi that visited all houses of farm widows and gave the compensation.
VASU you are the witness of all developments but your own 'WITNESS' programme has put all activist involved in this agrarian crisis in fix.if your witness is true that it's moral binding for all of us to commit suicide .this is insult humanity it's matter of national shame.
I respect NDTV and request you to arrange detail probe on news item feeds used for this witness as it's seems to be fabricated one and more extensive stories on struggle of farm widows as damage control exercise .we never expected the words and draft used to show this news item,I PAINED AS EVERY NEW DAY IS COMING NEW SAGA SUICIDE AND NEW VERSION FARM WIDOWS DISPARATE ATTEMPTS OF SERVILE.
I FEEL NOBODY IS GIVING ANY ATTENTION TO THIS SERIOUS ISSUE ,NOW VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS IS FOR "SPECIAL NEWS ITEM" .
MAY GOD BLESS VIDARBHA FARMERS AND FARM WIDOWS.
regards,
I pained,
thanking
yours faithfully
kishor tiwari
vidarbha@gmail.com
================
here is news item
===============
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution
http://www.ndtv.com/morenews/showmorestory.asp?category=National&id=102079#
________________________________
Monday, March 12, 2007 (Amravati):
The families of suicide hit farmers in Vidarbha are being forced into prostitution and into the hands of sex trafficking network.
Every day a cotton farmer commits suicide in the region and every day a new widow is born.
Twenty-six-year-old Rekha has two sons and lives in Amravati district - Vidharbha's suicide centre.
Two years ago, pushed to the brink by moneylenders and a debt of Rs 30,000, her husband drank insecticide and killed himself.
That changed Rekha's world forever. Today she is a prostitute. Her clients include truck drivers on the highway linking Amravati to Mumbai.
She has to get to work from nine in the morning and has no time to waste.
Rekha's family, like the family of the other women, have no idea what she does.
Casualties of killing fields
As Rekha waits on the road, it's not truckers but a group of Congress workers who try and pick her up.
They want free sex and try to tear her clothes off. Rekha fights them off, just barely. Later a bike pulled over and a deal was struck.
Rekha insisted on using condoms.
Like Rekha, her other friends are the indirect casualties of Vidharbha's killing fields. Unlike other prostitutes they stick together in a group.
Reshma's husband hung himself three months ago because of debt.
His brothers have usurped her land and now what Reshma earns from selling her body is her family's only earning.
NDTV: When did you become a prostitute?
Reshma: Last month. Nobody was giving me work.
NDTV: Why?
Reshma: When you don't have a husband, you become an easy suspect. People think we steal. They don't give work.
Rural distress
It's already well known that women get pushed into prostitution due to rural distress.
Razia, an anti-trafficking activist, says the nightmare of sex trade and trafficking, associated more with Maharshtra's Marathwada region, has now entered Vidharbha.
NDTV team travel to the house of Nirja - 80 kilometres from Amravati. She is 25-year-old and has three children. Her elder sister-in-law Sulekha has two.
Nirja's husband hung himself to death two years ago because of debt. A year ago, for the same reason, Sulekha's husband also committed suicide.
They tried to till their three acres of land and grow cotton and tur dal. But the cotton crop failed and they just have enough tur for their own use.
They were desperate. Pushed to the brink Nirja became a prostitute.
First it was the shame of debt and harassment which pushed their men to suicide and now the shame of prostitution.
Sulekha: Earlier we never even worked. Now we have to do this because of our children.
NDTV: Your courage must be appreciated.
NDTV Do villagers say anything about the work you do?
Nirja: They say things behind our backs. But we can't afford to pay attention.
Nirja says she will sell her body so that her daughter and Sulekha's daughter never have to and so that they don't end up on the highway, the like other daughters of suicide country.
TO,
SHRINIVASAN JAIN,
NDTV,MUMBAI.
REF: YOUR AWARD WINING PROGRAMME 'witness' ON VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS.
Respected sir,
I was shocked to see your programme last night witness and could not sleep through out night ,VJAS is only activist group who keeping track farmers suicides and always raising issues of farm widows and updated the whole world regarding plights of widows but your investigative "news item" has been first time information that vidarbha farm widows are forced prostitution.
we respect NDTV nad shrinivasan jain too but ,YOUR THIS NEWS ITEM IS NOT TRUE ,it is carrying very wrong impression regarding more than 3500 farm widows who are working hard against all odds and I have not seen single case of this kind till today .the moral and support theses farm widows are the real spirit of us to work against the all odds in these days of distress .
Here web text and link has been reproduced for my all inter national and national regular mail recipient as I have receiving the calls through out day to know the fact. cases we tracked needs to be probed further but generalisation of issue makes question mark to character of all farm widows .this is very critical issue as whole focus has been vidarbha farm widows moreover projecting vidarbha as new hub for export of farm widows for national prostitution ,VASU IS IT FAIR REPORTING SIR?
NDTV has been reporting vidarbha farm crisis since 1998 and first case of vidarbha cotton framers suicide of RAMDAS AMBARWAR of village taleng takli in yavatmal was reported by NDTV on 1 HOUR SLOT of star news forced Maharashtra chief minister manohar joshi that visited all houses of farm widows and gave the compensation.
VASU you are the witness of all developments but your own 'WITNESS' programme has put all activist involved in this agrarian crisis in fix.if your witness is true that it's moral binding for all of us to commit suicide .this is insult humanity it's matter of national shame.
I respect NDTV and request you to arrange detail probe on news item feeds used for this witness as it's seems to be fabricated one and more extensive stories on struggle of farm widows as damage control exercise .we never expected the words and draft used to show this news item,I PAINED AS EVERY NEW DAY IS COMING NEW SAGA SUICIDE AND NEW VERSION FARM WIDOWS DISPARATE ATTEMPTS OF SERVILE.
I FEEL NOBODY IS GIVING ANY ATTENTION TO THIS SERIOUS ISSUE ,NOW VIDARBHA AGRARIAN CRISIS IS FOR "SPECIAL NEWS ITEM" .
MAY GOD BLESS VIDARBHA FARMERS AND FARM WIDOWS.
regards,
I pained,
thanking
yours faithfully
kishor tiwari
vidarbha@gmail.com
================
here is news item
===============
Vidarbha widows forced into prostitution
http://www.ndtv.com/morenews
_____________________________
Monday, March 12, 2007 (Amravati):
The families of suicide hit farmers in Vidarbha are being forced into prostitution and into the hands of sex trafficking network.
Every day a cotton farmer commits suicide in the region and every day a new widow is born.
Twenty-six-year-old Rekha has two sons and lives in Amravati district - Vidharbha's suicide centre.
Two years ago, pushed to the brink by moneylenders and a debt of Rs 30,000, her husband drank insecticide and killed himself.
That changed Rekha's world forever. Today she is a prostitute. Her clients include truck drivers on the highway linking Amravati to Mumbai.
She has to get to work from nine in the morning and has no time to waste.
Rekha's family, like the family of the other women, have no idea what she does.
Casualties of killing fields
As Rekha waits on the road, it's not truckers but a group of Congress workers who try and pick her up.
They want free sex and try to tear her clothes off. Rekha fights them off, just barely. Later a bike pulled over and a deal was struck.
Rekha insisted on using condoms.
Like Rekha, her other friends are the indirect casualties of Vidharbha's killing fields. Unlike other prostitutes they stick together in a group.
Reshma's husband hung himself three months ago because of debt.
His brothers have usurped her land and now what Reshma earns from selling her body is her family's only earning.
NDTV: When did you become a prostitute?
Reshma: Last month. Nobody was giving me work.
NDTV: Why?
Reshma: When you don't have a husband, you become an easy suspect. People think we steal. They don't give work.
Rural distress
It's already well known that women get pushed into prostitution due to rural distress.
Razia, an anti-trafficking activist, says the nightmare of sex trade and trafficking, associated more with Maharshtra's Marathwada region, has now entered Vidharbha.
NDTV team travel to the house of Nirja - 80 kilometres from Amravati. She is 25-year-old and has three children. Her elder sister-in-law Sulekha has two.
Nirja's husband hung himself to death two years ago because of debt. A year ago, for the same reason, Sulekha's husband also committed suicide.
They tried to till their three acres of land and grow cotton and tur dal. But the cotton crop failed and they just have enough tur for their own use.
They were desperate. Pushed to the brink Nirja became a prostitute.
First it was the shame of debt and harassment which pushed their men to suicide and now the shame of prostitution.
Sulekha: Earlier we never even worked. Now we have to do this because of our children.
NDTV: Your courage must be appreciated.
NDTV Do villagers say anything about the work you do?
Nirja: They say things behind our backs. But we can't afford to pay attention.
Nirja says she will sell her body so that her daughter and Sulekha's daughter never have to and so that they don't end up on the highway, the like other daughters of suicide country.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Four More Farmers Suicide In Vidarbha On 60th Birthday Of Manohar Nike
Four More Farmers Suicide In Vidarbha On 60th Birthday Of Manohar Nike
http://mynews.in/newsdetail.aspx?news_id=445
Nagpur
On 9th march Vidarbha region of Maharashtra rocked with another four suicides when *1. MODHUKAR GANJU RATHODE OF GAWADGOAN VILLAGE IN AKOLA* *2. OMKAR CHANDU RAHANGADALE OF ASADI TANDA IN GONDIA* *3. KISHORE RAMRAO GAWANDE OF VILLAGE CHONDI IN PUSAD* *4. ASHOK MAHADEV TIDAKE OF VILLAGE JAMATHI IN AKOLA* ended their life by killing themselves in Vidarbha agrarian crisis. When Kishor Gawande was committing suicide in Chondhi , 10 k.m. away the guardian minister of Yavatmal district. And nephew of ex-chief minister late Vasantrao Naik , shri Manohar Naik was celebrating his 60th birthday with great fanfare in Pusad. That agony of the shamelessness of corrupt politician when Yavatmal district alone reported more than 1000 farmers suicides in last 4 years and most of them are from Manohar Naik's Banjara community even though he was celebrating his birthday with great fanfare. VJAS leader Kishor Tiwari informed to the local media over the mass genocide. It's really a mockery of the relief operation that PMO has arranged. PMO had ordered IB probe in relief aid distribution to distress farmers of Vidarbha when Mahrashtra Government filed an affidavit in apex court that local administration has not received any money from the Rs.3750/- crore Prime Minister Relief Package to the suicide prone west Vidarbha declared in July 2006. Kishore Tiwari of VJAS has demanded that the Govt. should come out with facts before the nation about the exact amount that has reached to the dieing farmers. There are 9 more suicidal deaths: three from Yavatmal, and Buldhana each and one from Washim, Gondia, Amaravati, identified as 5. JANARDAN SATHE OF VILLAGE MAREGOAN IN BULDHANA,* *6. RAGHUNATH DHONDU BORKAR OF NAWARGOANBANDH IN GONDIA* *7. VITHAL ATTARKAR OF VILLAGE SONADA IN BHULDHANA * *8. SHARVAN CHICHOLKAR OF VILLAGE KOPOMANDAVI IN YAVATMAL* *9. VITHOBA THAKARE OF SALOD IN YAVATMAL* *10. SAHEBRAO MAPARI OF VILLAGE DHANODA IN WASHIM* *11. VILAS CHAVAN OF VILLAGE CHIROLI IN AMARAVTI DISTT.* *12. MORSHING DANGE OF VILLAGE TATAPUR IN BULDHANA* *13. ANDU RATHODE OF VILLAGE TANDOLI IN YAVATMAL*. 7 farmers who committed suicide during chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh's 6-7 March visit are *14. SHAKAR INGOLE OF GRAMWADHANI IN WASHIM* *15. RAMBHAU KHULSANGE OF HIWARA INWARDHA* *16. RAMDAS SAMARTHA OF SHIVANI IN GADCHIROLI* *17. RAIBHAN PAWAR OF RAI TALAO IN YAVATMAL* *18. SARANGDHAR MALI OF WAZEGOAN IN AKOLA* *19. JANUSHINGH RATHODE OF IJANI IN YAVATMAL* *20. ASHOK SATPUTE OF RALEGOAN IN YAVATMAL* *In the month of march 2007, 40 more farmers have committed suicide. And in the month of feb, 2007, 88 and January 2007, 70 farmers committed suicide to take the total figure of farmer suicides in 2007 to 198 as this figure is almost double than last year's figure. In fact more than official figure of farm suicides is almost 3500 in last four year and this figure is record figure in last 100 years but till Maharashtra Govt. *Kishore Tiwari* *Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti* vidarbha@gmail.com, contact-09422108846.
http://mynews.in/newsdetail
Nagpur
On 9th march Vidarbha region of Maharashtra rocked with another four suicides when *1. MODHUKAR GANJU RATHODE OF GAWADGOAN VILLAGE IN AKOLA* *2. OMKAR CHANDU RAHANGADALE OF ASADI TANDA IN GONDIA* *3. KISHORE RAMRAO GAWANDE OF VILLAGE CHONDI IN PUSAD* *4. ASHOK MAHADEV TIDAKE OF VILLAGE JAMATHI IN AKOLA* ended their life by killing themselves in Vidarbha agrarian crisis. When Kishor Gawande was committing suicide in Chondhi , 10 k.m. away the guardian minister of Yavatmal district. And nephew of ex-chief minister late Vasantrao Naik , shri Manohar Naik was celebrating his 60th birthday with great fanfare in Pusad. That agony of the shamelessness of corrupt politician when Yavatmal district alone reported more than 1000 farmers suicides in last 4 years and most of them are from Manohar Naik's Banjara community even though he was celebrating his birthday with great fanfare. VJAS leader Kishor Tiwari informed to the local media over the mass genocide. It's really a mockery of the relief operation that PMO has arranged. PMO had ordered IB probe in relief aid distribution to distress farmers of Vidarbha when Mahrashtra Government filed an affidavit in apex court that local administration has not received any money from the Rs.3750/- crore Prime Minister Relief Package to the suicide prone west Vidarbha declared in July 2006. Kishore Tiwari of VJAS has demanded that the Govt. should come out with facts before the nation about the exact amount that has reached to the dieing farmers. There are 9 more suicidal deaths: three from Yavatmal, and Buldhana each and one from Washim, Gondia, Amaravati, identified as 5. JANARDAN SATHE OF VILLAGE MAREGOAN IN BULDHANA,* *6. RAGHUNATH DHONDU BORKAR OF NAWARGOANBANDH IN GONDIA* *7. VITHAL ATTARKAR OF VILLAGE SONADA IN BHULDHANA * *8. SHARVAN CHICHOLKAR OF VILLAGE KOPOMANDAVI IN YAVATMAL* *9. VITHOBA THAKARE OF SALOD IN YAVATMAL* *10. SAHEBRAO MAPARI OF VILLAGE DHANODA IN WASHIM* *11. VILAS CHAVAN OF VILLAGE CHIROLI IN AMARAVTI DISTT.* *12. MORSHING DANGE OF VILLAGE TATAPUR IN BULDHANA* *13. ANDU RATHODE OF VILLAGE TANDOLI IN YAVATMAL*. 7 farmers who committed suicide during chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh's 6-7 March visit are *14. SHAKAR INGOLE OF GRAMWADHANI IN WASHIM* *15. RAMBHAU KHULSANGE OF HIWARA INWARDHA* *16. RAMDAS SAMARTHA OF SHIVANI IN GADCHIROLI* *17. RAIBHAN PAWAR OF RAI TALAO IN YAVATMAL* *18. SARANGDHAR MALI OF WAZEGOAN IN AKOLA* *19. JANUSHINGH RATHODE OF IJANI IN YAVATMAL* *20. ASHOK SATPUTE OF RALEGOAN IN YAVATMAL* *In the month of march 2007, 40 more farmers have committed suicide. And in the month of feb, 2007, 88 and January 2007, 70 farmers committed suicide to take the total figure of farmer suicides in 2007 to 198 as this figure is almost double than last year's figure. In fact more than official figure of farm suicides is almost 3500 in last four year and this figure is record figure in last 100 years but till Maharashtra Govt. *Kishore Tiwari* *Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti* vidarbha@gmail.com, contact-09422108846.
Friday, March 09, 2007
Nine Maharashtra farmer commit suicide in a day
Nine Maharashtra farmer commit suicide in a day
Posted on : 2007-03-09 Author : Indo Asian News Service News Category : India
Yavatmal (Maharashtra), March 9 Noise of official compassion notwithstanding, nine debt-ridden farmers ended their lives in Maharashtra's Vidarbha region on a single day Thursday.
Meanwhile, top officers of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) arrived to ascertain claims and counter-claims on the suicides as 28 farmers took their lives in the first nine days of this month.
Among the nine distressed farmers was 27-year-old Shravan Chicholkar of village Kopa Mandavi of this district, who left behind his 23-year-old widow and a four-month-old child. Vithoba Thakre of Salod and Bandu Rathod of Tandoli are the two other young farmers from this suicide-prone district who ended their lives the same day by consuming poison.
Five other farmers who committed suicide also hailed from western Vidarbha - three from Buldana and one each from Washim and Amravati district. One farmer who killed himself was from the paddy growing Gondia district of eastern Vidarbha, Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti chief Kishor Tiwari said.
The nine suicides come on the heels of seven tragedies occurring in the preceding two days. With the 12 farmers who committed suicide in the first six days of March, the month's suicide toll till date stands at 28. The region's toll in the first two months of 2007 is 70 and 88 respectively.
The suicides took place at a time when top IB officers dashed to the state secretariat in Mumbai and then to the distressed region at the behest of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) for a first hand investigation into the matter.
The officers' visit was occasioned by an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court on behalf of the state government, which stated that funds committed by the central government as a part of the prime minister's relief package were not forthcoming.
Reportedly queried by the PMO about the affidavit, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh apologised for the statement therein and blamed the bureaucrats for its 'wrong wording'.
(c) Indo-Asian News Service
Thursday, March 08, 2007
VIDARBHA JAN ANDOLAN SAMITI
11,trisaran nagar,khamala,nagpur-440 025
Phone-0712-2282457 mobile-09422108846 vidarbha@gmail.com
Ref-farm suicides -2007
very urgent –press note
Dated-8th March .,2007
SEVEN(7 )MORE FARMERS' SUICIDES IN CHIEF MINISTER TWO DAYS VIDARBHA TOUR: FARMERS HANGED HIM IN COUNSELING MEETING
Nagpur-8th March .,2007
In last two days when Maharashtra chief Minister vilasrao deshmukh was touring vidarbha on 6th and 7 th march and was making wild claims that farm suicide are on decline and relief packages are being implemented smoothly and effectively, seven more farmers in different part of vidarbha were killing themselves due to extreme distress and prevailing unprecedented agrarian crisis in vidarbha region "all political parties are making the farm suicide as election issue but no body is talking to come the road in order o stop this on going suicides of innocent farmers, kishore tiwari of vidarbha jan andolan samiti informed today.
In the first week of march2007 -20 more farm suicides have been reported and in the month of feb,07- 88 and jan-07-70 farmers committed suicide to take the total figure of farm suicides in 2007 to 178 as this figure is all most double than last year figure of farm suicide for corresponding period of last year 2006.In fact more than official figrure of farm suicides is almost 3500 in last four year and this figure is record figure in last 100 years but till maharashtra govt. Claims that suicides are on decline, it's mockery of the farm crisis, kishor tiwari added.
7 farmers who committed suicide during chief minister vilasrao deshmukh 6-7 March visits are
1.SHAKAR INGOLE OF GRAMWADHANI IN WASHIM
2.RAMBHAU KHULSANGE OF HIWARA INWARDHA
3.RAMDAS SAMARTHA OF SHIVANI IN GADCHIROLI
4.RAIBHAN PAWAR OF RAI TALAO IN YAVATMAL
5.SARANGDHAR MALI OF WAZEGOAN IN AKOLA
6.JANUSHINGH RATHODE OF IJANI IN YAVATMAL
7.ASHOK SATPUTE OF RALEGOAN IN YAVATMAL
FARMERS HANGED HIM IN COUNSELING MEETING
Govt. Efforts to spend crores of rupees over council ling of debt trapped and food starved farmers received serious blow when sarangdhar mali of village wazegoan has hanged himself in the counseling meeting of dr.udhaorao gadekar .in last one year more than dozen babas and gurus have given crore of rupees to arrange to council ling of distress farmers but all the time such efforts triggered suicides. In one hand govt. Says they no money to give e aid dying widows of farmers and here they spending huge amount of money over senseless activity to control suicides when farmers needs money for farming ,food for eating and heath care to survive ,kishor tiwari added
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pl arrange to release this press note
Thanking you yours faithfully
Kishore tiwari
Vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
11,trisaran nagar,khamala,nagpur-440 025
Phone-0712-2282457 mobile-09422108846 vidarbha@gmail.com
Ref-farm suicides -2007
very urgent –press note
Dated-8th March .,2007
SEVEN(7 )MORE FARMERS' SUICIDES IN CHIEF MINISTER TWO DAYS VIDARBHA TOUR: FARMERS HANGED HIM IN COUNSELING MEETING
Nagpur-8th March .,2007
In last two days when Maharashtra chief Minister vilasrao deshmukh was touring vidarbha on 6th and 7 th march and was making wild claims that farm suicide are on decline and relief packages are being implemented smoothly and effectively, seven more farmers in different part of vidarbha were killing themselves due to extreme distress and prevailing unprecedented agrarian crisis in vidarbha region "all political parties are making the farm suicide as election issue but no body is talking to come the road in order o stop this on going suicides of innocent farmers, kishore tiwari of vidarbha jan andolan samiti informed today.
In the first week of march2007 -20 more farm suicides have been reported and in the month of feb,07- 88 and jan-07-70 farmers committed suicide to take the total figure of farm suicides in 2007 to 178 as this figure is all most double than last year figure of farm suicide for corresponding period of last year 2006.In fact more than official figrure of farm suicides is almost 3500 in last four year and this figure is record figure in last 100 years but till maharashtra govt. Claims that suicides are on decline, it's mockery of the farm crisis, kishor tiwari added.
7 farmers who committed suicide during chief minister vilasrao deshmukh 6-7 March visits are
1.SHAKAR INGOLE OF GRAMWADHANI IN WASHIM
2.RAMBHAU KHULSANGE OF HIWARA INWARDHA
3.RAMDAS SAMARTHA OF SHIVANI IN GADCHIROLI
4.RAIBHAN PAWAR OF RAI TALAO IN YAVATMAL
5.SARANGDHAR MALI OF WAZEGOAN IN AKOLA
6.JANUSHINGH RATHODE OF IJANI IN YAVATMAL
7.ASHOK SATPUTE OF RALEGOAN IN YAVATMAL
FARMERS HANGED HIM IN COUNSELING MEETING
Govt. Efforts to spend crores of rupees over council ling of debt trapped and food starved farmers received serious blow when sarangdhar mali of village wazegoan has hanged himself in the counseling meeting of dr.udhaorao gadekar .in last one year more than dozen babas and gurus have given crore of rupees to arrange to council ling of distress farmers but all the time such efforts triggered suicides. In one hand govt. Says they no money to give e aid dying widows of farmers and here they spending huge amount of money over senseless activity to control suicides when farmers needs money for farming ,food for eating and heath care to survive ,kishor tiwari added
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pl arrange to release this press note
Thanking you yours faithfully
Kishore tiwari
Vidarbha jan andolan samiti
vidarbha@gmail.com
contact-09422108846
Friday, March 02, 2007
Is the PMO blind to Vidarbha farmers' plight?-economictimes ask
The Economic Times Online
Printed from economictimes.indiatimes.com > Politics/Nation
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is the PMO blind to Vidarbha farmers' plight?
ABHIRAM GHADYALPATIL
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ SATURDAY, MARCH 03, 2007 02:15:16 AM]
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/PoliticsNation/Is_the_PMO_blind_to_Vidarbha_farmers_plight/articleshow/1716381.cms
MUMBAI: The Vidarbha suicide story has split two Congress-led governments right down in the middle, or so it seems. The state government has decided to join issue with the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) over the alleged poor implementation of the PM's relief package, Mantralaya officials told ET.
An affidavit filed by the state DF government in the Supreme Court two weeks ago contends that the Centre has not released Rs 3-crore aid meant for the widows of farmers who had committed suicides in the recent past.
The amount in question forms part of the Prime Minister's special relief package worth over Rs 3,750 crore for six districts in Vidarbha, which reported high incidence of suicides. Mantralaya sources said the sum should have been released to district collectors of the region concerned for immediate relief.
Predictably enough, the state's affidavit has not gone down well with the PMO, and a probe had been ordered to dig out the facts, sources said. "The affidavit proves that the Congress government in the state is not happy with the Centre and particularly with the PMO," said Kishore Tiwari of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti.
The state, however, is least perturbed. "We have taken note of the probe ordered by the PMO and relevant information will be conveyed to the Centre, if required," a rehabilitation official said. "The state can easily establish that allocations from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) earmarked under the package have not been released. In fact, the state has had to spend from its own reserves on measures which are part of the PM's package," the official told ET.
The apex court is hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by a social activist blaming the Centre for not releasing funds committed under the relief package. The PIL takes note of reports carried by ET in February saying that the Centre has released a paltry 15% of its promised outlay of Rs 3,750 crore till January-end this year.
The state finance minister, Jayant Patil, had earlier held the PMO responsible for not doing the needful. While the state has spent more than 85% of its relief funds on suicide, the Centre is way short of achieving the targets set out by the Prime Minister.
"It's quite surprising that the PMO has ordered a probe. Because chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and finance minister Jayant Patil had pointed this out to the Planning Commission in January and urged the Centre to sanction funds," a top state bureaucrat said.
©Bennett, Coleman and Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.
Printed from economictimes.indiatimes.com > Politics/Nation
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is the PMO blind to Vidarbha farmers' plight?
ABHIRAM GHADYALPATIL
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ SATURDAY, MARCH 03, 2007 02:15:16 AM]
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/PoliticsNation/Is_the_PMO_blind_to_Vidarbha_farmers_plight/articleshow/1716381.cms
MUMBAI: The Vidarbha suicide story has split two Congress-led governments right down in the middle, or so it seems. The state government has decided to join issue with the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) over the alleged poor implementation of the PM's relief package, Mantralaya officials told ET.
An affidavit filed by the state DF government in the Supreme Court two weeks ago contends that the Centre has not released Rs 3-crore aid meant for the widows of farmers who had committed suicides in the recent past.
The amount in question forms part of the Prime Minister's special relief package worth over Rs 3,750 crore for six districts in Vidarbha, which reported high incidence of suicides. Mantralaya sources said the sum should have been released to district collectors of the region concerned for immediate relief.
Predictably enough, the state's affidavit has not gone down well with the PMO, and a probe had been ordered to dig out the facts, sources said. "The affidavit proves that the Congress government in the state is not happy with the Centre and particularly with the PMO," said Kishore Tiwari of Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti.
The state, however, is least perturbed. "We have taken note of the probe ordered by the PMO and relevant information will be conveyed to the Centre, if required," a rehabilitation official said. "The state can easily establish that allocations from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) earmarked under the package have not been released. In fact, the state has had to spend from its own reserves on measures which are part of the PM's package," the official told ET.
The apex court is hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by a social activist blaming the Centre for not releasing funds committed under the relief package. The PIL takes note of reports carried by ET in February saying that the Centre has released a paltry 15% of its promised outlay of Rs 3,750 crore till January-end this year.
The state finance minister, Jayant Patil, had earlier held the PMO responsible for not doing the needful. While the state has spent more than 85% of its relief funds on suicide, the Centre is way short of achieving the targets set out by the Prime Minister.
"It's quite surprising that the PMO has ordered a probe. Because chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and finance minister Jayant Patil had pointed this out to the Planning Commission in January and urged the Centre to sanction funds," a top state bureaucrat said.
©Bennett, Coleman and Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Nothing at all for desperate farmers
the asian age -1st march-2007
"We are very sorry, very disturbed. There are daily reports of five to six families whose breadwinner commits suicide, leaving behind widows and little children. Their life is destroyed," said Mr Kishor Tiwari, convenor of the Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti and chronicler of the farmers who commit suicide. Talking to this newspaper from Nagpur, he said: "We are living in a society where the Union finance minister cannot talk about the farmers' suicides. There are about 3,000 widows and he could have applied a healing touch in the Budget by giving them something." The Economic Survey reflected the agrarian distress but Mr Chidambaram was quiet on it, he said. "The National Commission on Farmers has asked for an income-based policy for farmers and a mechanism for a minimum support price, and he has done nothing on it," he said. Asked what he would have liked Mr Chidambaram to do, Mr Tiwari noted that the finance minister had announced that "70 lakh farmers would be covered by institutional credit. This is hardly enough. We have 20 crore farmer families what is 70 lakhs? Farmers need sufficient credit at the right time. The basic issue is the agrarian crisis, and this was not mentioned. There is nothing for the cotton-growing farmers. He should have imposed a 60 per cent import duty on cotton. After his 2006 Budget, 1,500 farmers have committed suicide in six districts of Vidarbha. He should have given a loan waiver. What is the use of an interest waiver? The minimum price for cotton procurement should have been made Rs 3,000 per quintal to make it remunerative for farmers to cultivate cotton." Mr Chidambaram has talked of lowering customs duty on ultrasound and sophisticated medical equipment, but does not provide for doctors and medicines in rural areas, he added.
The subsidy on fertilisers and drip irrigation is just a roadmap for providing infrastructure for corporate farming. The small and marginal farmers do not even have insurance cover, Mr Tiwari pointed out.
He said that since 70 per cent of the population lived in rural areas, there should be special provisions to address their needs.
Mr Tiwari claimed that the finance minister could have freed farmers from their indebtedness with an outlay of Rs 50,000 crores.
He should have also told the banks to ensure that farmers got their loans when they needed them, such as in AprilMay when they have to buy inputs to sown from June, when the rains start.
But since a lot of bank managers are on leave in MayJune, they start giving money only from August and till Diwali, Mr Tiwari claimed. Till then the farmers were at the mercy of moneylenders who sell them inputs like seeds and fertilisers, and then bought his produce at low prices
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the asian age -1st march-2007
"We are very sorry, very disturbed. There are daily reports of five to six families whose breadwinner commits suicide, leaving behind widows and little children. Their life is destroyed," said Mr Kishor Tiwari, convenor of the Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti and chronicler of the farmers who commit suicide. Talking to this newspaper from Nagpur, he said: "We are living in a society where the Union finance minister cannot talk about the farmers' suicides. There are about 3,000 widows and he could have applied a healing touch in the Budget by giving them something." The Economic Survey reflected the agrarian distress but Mr Chidambaram was quiet on it, he said. "The National Commission on Farmers has asked for an income-based policy for farmers and a mechanism for a minimum support price, and he has done nothing on it," he said. Asked what he would have liked Mr Chidambaram to do, Mr Tiwari noted that the finance minister had announced that "70 lakh farmers would be covered by institutional credit. This is hardly enough. We have 20 crore farmer families what is 70 lakhs? Farmers need sufficient credit at the right time. The basic issue is the agrarian crisis, and this was not mentioned. There is nothing for the cotton-growing farmers. He should have imposed a 60 per cent import duty on cotton. After his 2006 Budget, 1,500 farmers have committed suicide in six districts of Vidarbha. He should have given a loan waiver. What is the use of an interest waiver? The minimum price for cotton procurement should have been made Rs 3,000 per quintal to make it remunerative for farmers to cultivate cotton." Mr Chidambaram has talked of lowering customs duty on ultrasound and sophisticated medical equipment, but does not provide for doctors and medicines in rural areas, he added.
The subsidy on fertilisers and drip irrigation is just a roadmap for providing infrastructure for corporate farming. The small and marginal farmers do not even have insurance cover, Mr Tiwari pointed out.
He said that since 70 per cent of the population lived in rural areas, there should be special provisions to address their needs.
Mr Tiwari claimed that the finance minister could have freed farmers from their indebtedness with an outlay of Rs 50,000 crores.
He should have also told the banks to ensure that farmers got their loans when they needed them, such as in AprilMay when they have to buy inputs to sown from June, when the rains start.
But since a lot of bank managers are on leave in MayJune, they start giving money only from August and till Diwali, Mr Tiwari claimed. Till then the farmers were at the mercy of moneylenders who sell them inputs like seeds and fertilisers, and then bought his produce at low prices
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