Kerala to set up Farmers Liability Comm shortly

Kochi, Jul 8: The Kerala Government will soon set up a quasi-judicial 'farmers liability commission' to arbitrate on the loans taken by farmers from private individuals or agencies, state agriculture minister Mullakar Ratnakaran said today.

Talking to newspersons at the Government Guest House at Aluva, near here, after a meeting with senior state and district officials and representatives of farmers organisations, Mr Ratnakaran said that this was the first time in the country that such a commission was being set up.

He said counselling centres would also be set up immediately in the worst-hit Wayanad, Idukki, Palakkad and Kasargod districts, where the maximum number of farmers suicides had taken place.

Admitting that there were no clear figures on the number of farmer suicides in the state, the minister said while the Central Government figures was 201, the state government figures were 510 whereas the media had reported more than 1500 farmer suicides. He said efforts were being made to provide agriculture subsidies directly to the farmers.

The state government had already submitted a memorandum to the Centre on the need for a suitable package for the farmers of the state, he said and hoped that the Centre would give a positive response.

State Agricultre Production Commissioner Mathew C Kunnungal, Ernakulam District Collector A P M Mohammad Haneesh and Agriculture Director P S Shashi were also present at the meeting.

The farmers representatives stressed the need for timely procuring of paddy by the cooperatives and the need to provide subsidies directly to farmers, without the involvement of middlemen.

UNI