Another suicide by a farmer in Maharashtra

Nagpur, Jul 8: Another farmer has committed suicide in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

Ramdas Kolhe ended his life after he could not pay his loan debt taken from a local moneylender.

He was also worried about his daughter's impending marriage.

The Central Government sanctioned around rupees 1075 crores in 2006 to farmers to help them to buy seeds and use better farming techniques in the drought-hit region.

According to the farmers, the fund was not enough for them to survive.

A second package worth rupees 3750 crores was sanctioned, but this too has not prevented farmer-related suicides.

"He did not get any loan from the bank, so he took a loan from a moneylender. His debt rose to rupees 70,000-80,000 and without any gains from farming, he was forced to commit suicide," claimed Madhukar Kolhe, his relative.

Gyaneshwar Kolhe, his daughter, said that her father was worried about his debts and her marriage, and this caused him to commit suicide.

The local administration, however, claims that most suicides are of a non-agrarian nature, such as alcoholism, social tensions and family problems.

"It is crystal clear that if the implementation of the package was good, or the packages was marked properly, then definitely the suicide rate would have reduced," claimed Shreemanth Mane, a correspondent with the Deshnnati, a local newspaper.

The government recently announced a 15-billion dollar loan waiver for small farmers, and according to experts, the scheme has been badly diluted because it leaves out those borrowing from moneylenders.

ANI