Don't term all deaths in villages as farmer suicides, they urge government, media

Bengaluru, Jul 15 (DHNS): The members of the Legislative Council on Tuesday averred that the State government and the media should not jump the gun by considering all deaths in rural areas as farmer suicides, and by immediately according compensation to the family of the deceased.

Participating in the debate on the rise in farmers’ suicides in the State, the members demanded that the government should set up a fact finding committee to ascertain the actual reason behind the deaths, before awarding compensation.

V S Ugrappa (Cong) said that there were instances when farmers were committing suicides for the sake of compensation.

“There has been a dramatic rise in the number of suicides during the time of the legislature session. However, nobody is trying to establish the veracity of these deaths, and all of them are being termed as suicides,” he said.

Quoting experts, he said that a majority of suicides (13.79%) pertained to liquor-related problems and other behavioural factors. While 11.8 pc of suicides were due to chronic illnesses, 12.32 pc suicides were due to economic factors/indebtedness.

Veeranna Mathikatti (Cong) said that giving compensation would only encourage more people to commit suicides.

Citing an instance, Horatti said that a farmer in his constituency had taken a loan of Rs 20 lakh, out of which Rs four lakh was spent on his daughter’s wedding, and Rs 10 lakh to get his son a job in the police department. “Should the government award compensation in such cases also?”

Horatti also said that the government should constitute a fact finding committee to ascertain the reasons for suicide before giving compensation. This was seconded by Krishna Bhat of the BJP too.

Minister of State for Agriculture Krishna Byre Gowda wanted farmers to focus on food crops rather than commercial crops.

The government would purchase any quantum of ragi and jowar from farmers, Gowda said.

6 more farmers in debt end lives

Bengaluru, Jul 15 (DHNS): As many as six debt-stressed farmers have ended their lives in the State in the last 24 hours.

Rangaswamaiah (50), a farmer from Narayanakere of Tumakuru taluk, committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree at his farm on Monday night. He was was reeling under heavy debts. Anil, 19, ended his life by consuming poison at his house in Doddakoppalu village of Kunigal taluk in Tumakuru district. He had taken Rs 4.5 lakh from banks and moneylenders.

Nagaraj, a farmer from Mundagodu in Arakalgud taluk of Hassan district. committed suicide on Monday night. Nagaraj, along with his father Rajappa, had availed Rs eight lakh from a bank. He had also taken loans from moneylenders. Unable to repay, Nagaraj consumed poison at his house on Saturday. He was rushed to a hospital in Hassan where he died two days later.

Upset over fall in cocoon prices in the market, a farmer involved in cocoon-rearing committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree at his farm at Kondlahalli in Molakalmuru taluk of Chitradurga district. Police identified the deceased as Giriyappa (64). He had taken Rs eight lakh from banks and moneylenders.

Nagappa Byadagi (55) ended his life by jumping in front of a moving train near Yalvigi in Savanur taluk of Haveri district. He had borrowed loan to the tune of Rs five lakh from nationalised bank and private finance companies.

Sabu Shivarudrappa Talakeri, 62, was found dead at a cow shed in Ghote village of Jamkhandi taluk on Bagalkot district. Sabu had grown tur dal on his four-acre rain-fed farm. Lack of water had blunted the growth of tur dal crop.