Q: Are farmers in Odisha really committing suicide due to crop loss or drought?
Ans: No, the reported people who are committing suicide are generally farmer but not committing suicide due to crop loss. Everyone in Odisha residing in villages is farmer and takes credit from the cooperative bank and is in debt.
Q: Then how it is called a farmer suicide?
Ans: See, the whole farmer suicide thing is a corroborated stuff. Generally everyone in rural area is farmer. When there is any unnatural death then it is corroborated as a farmer suicide.
Q: Why it is corroborated as a farmer suicide and what is the gain by doing so?
Ans: Many people gains from it; from the local politician to the farmer’s family. Suppose someone commit suicide for any family dispute or any other reason, then the local politician visit the family. Local politician from all parties with an understanding corroborate it as a farmer suicide. In my block, last year we have report of 3 farmer suicide but personally I knew the exact truth. The local media/journalist is in the hand of the local politician. A block level reporter is generally a newspaper vendor. They report news with a charge of Rs 50/- . They can write anything as they sell the paper. And the newspaper publishes those. Again in Odisha the major newspapers are runs/owned by the leaders from oppositions so publishing such stuff against the government for these newspaper serves two folds, it fulfill taking their political vendetta as well as it is sensational news which helps selling the newspapers.
Q: It is true that media play roles in such things but how the local politicians and the farmer family gains from it?
Ans: It is a good question. Local politician earn sympathy of the deceased family as well as from the public. They help the poor farmer family to avail benefits of different schemes available for an unnatural death from the government like Harischandra Yojana etc. Politician gain sympathy and the family gain financial support. Apart from this if a suicide is committed due to other reason again there is problem of the courts and police. So to avoid these, the farmer family agreed to call it as a farmer suicide.
Q: Who are the others gain from it?
Ans: The whole system gains out of it. Local politician gain sympathy, for the newspaper it is a hot and salable item, for the opposition it is an issue to halt the assembly, for the government it is an opportunity to declare benefit for the deceased farmer family and take mileage. So it is a win-win situation for all. There is no farmer suicide in the ground just these are corroborated for political gains for all parties. People in the ground never oppose, because they knew the truth, if someone from their neighborhood get some money, what is the problem.
Q: Such news goes viral in the social media, what is your take?
Ans: You see, percentage of users of social media is higher in urban area and it is 4-5% in rural area. That too limited to young and adolescent groups. The people who are staying out of the state gets news from such places, and most are biased.
Q: What is your final comment?
Ans: Such news gives a bad impression on other people about your state. It is worrisome. Sometime it irked you when you meet people from outside of your state, and they talk about such stuffs. But, if the whole system is in alignment, you are helpless.
