While politicians are busy earning brownie points through waving off farmer loans, the farmers in Maharashtra’s Pune and Ahmednagar districts have a different story to tell.
I had decided to check whether the farmers in Maharashtra are really in favour of the loan waiver after the opposition members were screaming in the legislature almost every day, during the budget session which began on March 9 and concluded on April 17. I decided to visit two districts, Pune and Ahmednagar which are politically more aware than other parts of the state.
On my first stop at a village Malad in Pune, I met an educated farmer Savata Navle, an old friend. We studied journalism in Pune University in 2000. However, after a year Savata chose to continue his family tradition of farming. "I have taken a bumper crop of jowar after a gap of 16 years," Savata announced with a proud feeling. However, he could not hide his displeasure the next moment. "Last year, jowar had got rate of Rs 1800 per quintal. This year, it is just Rs 1200 per quintal." In other words, he had large produce but he did not earn more than the last year’s income because of low market prices.
Savata backs the idea of loan waiver to the farmers who do not have subsidiary business. He has set an example on how a farmer with subsidiary business can survive in the time of crisis. His five-acre farm land does not grow anything than jowar and sugarcane but his cattle – 50 cows – have helped him sustain on the business of milk.
On the other side of Malad is another village called Kauthadi. It is around 22 km from Baramati, the town NCP chief Sharad Pawar refers to as a development model. I spotted farm of pomegranate spread over 10 acre and stopped to inquire about its owner. Haushiram Matole pointed towards his dried field to underpin that water shortage as affected his crop. A born farmer Matole said his pomegranates were sold at Rs 80 per kg last year. This year, the rate has come down to Rs 8 per kg because of the low quality of the product.
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