In 2011 when Christian Parenti wrote, "Tropic of Chaos" he wrote about a multitude of different issues. However, what stuck with me the most was the mass suicides of Indian farmers. The driving factor in these suicides is the climate crisis, drought, and debt. It is truly a disheartening situation. To understand the situation better, we have to take a deep dive into the history that has caused this tragedy.
"In recent years, irrigation has suffered under a wave of neoliberalism disinvestment. The state has removed important subsidies from small farmers; as a result, thousands of them have killed themselves (Parenti, 143)". In other words, the Indian government essentially didn't value the small farmers and cut back efficient irrigation and resources in favor of larger corporations. This led to more expensive wells and irrigation which pushed small farmers to take loans from banks. The little water that was naturally left soon went dry. With a mix of warmer temperatures, drought, and astronomical loans, farmers couldn't make ends meet. For thousands, the only option they saw fit was to swallow pesticides.
To make matters worse, most of the farmers dug the wells themselves. Such wells average between $1,400 and $3,000. The amount of natural aquifers in India is less than ideal. With increasing temperatures and the cost of digging a well, irrigating your fields is close to impossible. These small farmers get almost zero government aid for an issue the government caused. It is truly sickening and has led to hundreds of thousands of deaths.
So what has changed since Parenti wrote "Tropic of Chaos" in 2011? To answer in short, it hasn't gotten any better. The latest statistics show that 321,407 Indian farmers killed themselves between 1995 and 2016 according to data from the National Crime Records Bureau. As of 2019, 10,000 farmers committed suicide and made up 7.4 percent of total suicide victims in India. Additionally, every day 28 people dependent on farming commit suicide. According to www.downtoearth.org "The top six states — Maharashtra (3,927 suicides), Karnataka (1,992), Andhra Pradesh (1,029), Madhya Pradesh (541), Chhattisgarh (499) and Telangana (499) — account for 83 percent of the deaths committed by persons involved in the farm sector as of 2020". These statistics seem almost unimaginable and are truly eye-opening. Nearly 60 percent of the farmers who committed suicide own more than four acres of land and are predominantly cotton producers. A report from the Maharashtra state government concluded that 93 percent of all these suicides are due to debt (www.brookings.edu).
Once again, what's happening in India is truly a tragedy. The suicides that are a direct cause of the climate crisis are very eye-opening. Personally, living in the northern region of the United States, I haven't truly felt the effects of the climate crisis. We need to act and act quickly. We cannot hide from this issue and it will affect each of us sooner or later. I chose to focus on Indian farmers and the impact they have felt from the climate crisis. However, this issue is just a little section of the overall issues that are occurring throughout our world because of the climate. This is a terrifying situation and we all need to put our best effort forward.
- Stephen Schultz
Links:
https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/shamika-paper-suicides-edited.pdf
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/agriculture/every-day-28-people-dependent-on-farming-die-by-suicide-in-india-73194
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/india-farmers-suicide-1.5968086
Dang man, the facts you bring up are astounding. For us, it is truly unimaginable what is happening in India and what the farmers must be facing. Thanks for writing about such a difficult topic.
ReplyDeleteWow, that is such a jaw dropping read. It is really saddening to see that Indian farmers see that as a way out. It is truly frightening how something as climate change can have unforeseen consequences. Overall, great blog, good job.
ReplyDeleteHow mind blowing after reading the number of farmers that took there life. And its shocking to me that this was due to climate crisis. Very scary stuff and great blog.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very difficult topic to read about, but you did a great job portraying the information. I wonder what is being done now to prevent these suicides now that the epidemic was identified.
ReplyDeleteIt continues to amaze me how governments can just look the other way when their actions have such severe repercussions. These people thought they could rely on the government, only to find themselves alone when it truly mattered. It's so saddening that it has all come down to suicide to get away from their debt.
ReplyDeleteFor the amount of people taking their own lives due to the increasing fact that these governments simply do nothing to aid their own suppliers/farmers, is extremely shocking and surprisinto see. For countries such as India, i would expect that more government aid could be going to its own farmers to help cover the cost of drilling wells or bringing water form neighboring cities to try and help with the increase in droughts across the country. so sad to see.
ReplyDeleteIf I remember correctly a couple years back there was a headline like this for Australia and how bad things were for farmers there that they couldn't get out of loans because of lack of rain and would end up drinking pesticides to kill themselves.
ReplyDeleteMass suicides of farmers in India wasn't a topic I remember much from my reading of Tropics of Chaos so I'm glad your blog post brought it back to my attention. It's a shame that the farmers who died could have been saved if their government had given them the assistance they needed. This are many arguments that people make in the US in opposition to social programs and government assistance, but I think we can all agree that no country should let its people starve.
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