TN farmers protest with skulls |
V Rajalakshmi knows that repaying her agriculture loan of Rs 3.5 lakh is beyond her. But she realises that she will be harassed by the debt collectors. Trying to draw attention to her plight, the 60-year-old sits at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi with eight skulls arrayed in front of her. These, she claims, are the remains of farmers in Tamil Nadu who, unable to cope with the agrarian crisis, committed suicide. The skulls are a grisly reminder of what lies ahead. The Cauvery basin is nearly depleted of groundwater. Rivulets, streams and canals are running dry, and farmers have to dig up to 1,500 feet below ground to find water. The South Indian Rivers Linking Farmers Association, which organised the protest, is demanding action to "prevent TN from turning into a desert". It is also demanding fair price for agricultural produce and waiver of loans taken by farmers from nationalised banks (loans from local banks have already been waived off). Its concerns have found a few supporters. Underlining the inadequacy of the measures taken by the Tamil Nadu government, Arupathi Kalyanam, general secretary, Cauvery Delta Districts Farmers Association, said the Rs 2,247 crore relief announced to cover 20 lakh hectares of the drought-affected 48 lakh hectares is too little.
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