Let’s face the BARE facts!

By Prasanna and G.Krishna Prasad

Do you know?

1) Farming community (Farmers and Agricultural labourers) is nearly 60% in India and 56% in Karnataka.

2) Nearly 6300 farmers in Karnataka alone have committed suicide over the past six years and nearly One Lakh farmers have lost their lives in the last Ten years. Vidarbha in Maharashtra has emerged as the epicenter.

3) Up to three farmers a day swallow pesticides, hang themselves from trees, drown themselves in rivers, set themselves on fire or jump down wells (They are not crazy). Many of them are plagued by debt, poor crops and hopelessness.

4) In Punjab, 2,800 widows of farmers who committed suicides, who have lost their lands, have to bring up children by working as ‘Landless workers’ on others' land.
Indian farmers in general and Karnataka farmers in particular, have never committed suicide on such a large scale. Being an agriculture dependent nation, It is a completely new phenomenon, the country is experiencing.

Certainly, all these developments are linked to the ill effects of globalization, trade liberalization in today's market and corporate-driven economy. What a pity!

The farmers, who feed us every meal, cannot put two square meals to their own children. What a sad irony? Isn’t it? Let us wake up from our slumber and stand up for farmers' 'Right to Live'.

Well, what can we do for them?

Awareness on the issues can be the first positive step.

On October 2nd, birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, who always used to put farmers as backbone and heart of our Nation, we will be organizing a rally in Bangalore to show solidarity with farmers and support to the community. We will act together for our farmers and send a strong message to Government that, we will NOT tolerate this indifference anymore.

This Action is an 'Awareness activity' to inform and involve the community on the issue. You & I will not be talking about this issue now, if not for the Rally, right? It is the duty of every informed citizen to put pressure on Government, to adopt farmer friendly policy, evolving from the grass roots, and not top-down.

Details of the Event:-

Date: Oct 02, 2007,Time: 10.30 am to 12 Noon
Route: BRC Circle (Near Indian Express) to M G Road.

BOOK RELEASE:-Kannada translation of the Book, containing Devendar Sharma's speech on the Agrarian Crisis gripping the nation, will be released on the occasion. The Book is being published by Sahaja Samrudha.

-AID India/Sahaja Samrudha