Crop loss drives farmers to suicide in Karnataka's tur belt

In September, Kalaburagi saw a farmer suicide every second day. According to the District Crime Records Bureau (DCRB), the drought condition caused by erratic rainfall prompted 29 debt-ridden tur growers to end their lives since the start of the kharif season in June. This includes three cases in June, five in July, seven in August and 14 in September.

Karnataka reported 251 farmer suicides since April.

Tur farmers in Kalaburagi district are reeling due to crop loss following the failure of the monsoon. They were already devastated by flooding and excess rainfall last year.

Other districts in the tur belt have also seen a high number of farmer suicides as per DCRB data. Between June and September, 35 farmer suicides were registered in Bidar district, 21 in Vijayapura and 21 in Yadgir district.

According to the agriculture department, tur is grown in 5,95,250 hectares out of a total of 8,65,024 hectares, accounting for 69% of the total sowing areas in Kalaburagi district. A joint estimation conducted by the officials revealed that 33% of crops, including tur grown on 1,94,969 hectares, are severely hit by rain deficit this kharif season. The tur crop grown in neighbouring Bidar, Raichur and Yadgir districts has also been destroyed due to the erratic monsoon.

Agriculture experts say that tur plants have grown to only two feet, instead of four feet, by the end of September. This will have an adverse effect on the yield apart from the quality of the crop in Kalaburagi, which is known as the tur bowl of Karnataka. The district accounts for the highest tur crop production in Karnataka, and roughly a tenth of India's production.

The loss of tur crop has compounded the woes of farmers, who were plunged into a debt trap last year due to the wilt disease. The government has disbursed Rs 118 crore to farmers out of the total Rs 181 compensation to be paid.

"My father Balappa Kembhavi had grown tur and cotton on seven acres of his farmland. He had borrowed around Rs 6 lakh from Krishna Grameen Bank and other moneylenders. The loss of crops during the last two years increased the loan amount. Dejected over crop loss and debt, he ended his life by jumping into a well," said Mareppa of Ambarkhed village in Jewargi taluk.

Twenty-eight-year-old Gururevansidda Pujar from Mansivangi village of Jewargi taluk hanged himself due to pressure from bank authorities to repay the loan taken for buying a tractor. He could pay only the first installment.

Agriculture Department Joint Director Samad Patel said the government has paid compensation to the families of 11 farmers who died by suicide due to crop loss this year. "An estimation of crop loss has already been submitted to the government and a detailed survey will be conducted jointly by the agriculture and revenue departments. This report is expected in the first week of October," he said.

Meanwhile, the flood, wilt disease last year and erratic monsoon during the present kharif season have resulted in poor arrivals of tur in the Agricultural Produce and Livestock Market Committee Yard in Kalaburagi. As a result, prices have shot up to Rs 13,000 per quintal, an all-time high.