Kisan Divas
By Dr Arvind Kumar
Plight of farmers in India has become very critical in recent decades. Small farmers are reeling under appalling debt and many of them commit suicide for being not able to repay the debt. 23 December is celebrated as Kisan Divas or Farmers’ Day to commemorate the memory of Chaudhary Charan Singh, whose life reflected his peasantry background and he understood problems of the farmer and did his best to help them.
The plight of farmers in India has been very miserable in present-day India and they have always been at the receiving end since Independence. Their hard toil fetches them nothing except fake assurances from the dispensations at the helm. It’s sad and unfortunate that people who are indispensable for the growth of nation have been left to their fate. This is quite evident from the suicide cases in Maharashtra, Andhra and other parts of the country including West Bengal. In state like UP middlemen and Mandi officials ensure that the farmers turn into object of grief. The need of the hour is implementation of schemes introduced by the government. This can take place effectively if the village panchayts are provided more power to execute them in smooth manner.
There is a need to equip farmers with latest technological accessories that augment the prospects of better output and thus make their contribution more prominent in the global economy. Better results could be attained if information centers having state-of-the -art facilities are set-up inside each village that shed light on issues related with farmers. Let’s not forget that they form the backbone of the nation and so it becomes imperative for us to be conscious of their needs. Both the Central and state governments should come out with plans, which prevent the farmers from being swayed by negative market forces.
