Just as they want publicity for their "achievements", the rulers, as a rule, do not like the media highlighting the failures of the government. The moment the government comes under an adverse glare, those in power begin to look for "hidden hands" tarnishing their image rather than addressing the problems being focused. It was, therefore, amusing to see Chief Minister S M Krishna deriding the media for reporting the serial suicides of farmers across the state when he should have been thankful to them for drawing the attention of the government to a serious problem, assuming crisis proportions.

The third consecutive drought has hit the farming community the hardest, as no sowing has taken place in over 50 per cent of the cultivable land. There is an acute shortage of even fodder and drinking water in many places. The government's relief measures have been perfunctory, as it has spent more time in blaming the Centre for not releasing adequate funds and food grains rather than concentrating on relief works in the worst affected regions.

Making exaggerated claims is the name of the game the bureaucrats and politicians are well versed with (for which Karnataka is no exception). Can anyone explain the basis on which the state has sought Rs 1,600 crore as drought relief from the Centre, when it has to actually make do with less than one-tenth of the amount?

It is true that suicides by farmers are not a recent phenomenon and the Krishna government alone cannot be blamed for it. Ever since 1996 when the Union government through the crime branch of the police department started monitoring the suicide cases, an average of 12,000 suicides per year has been reported in Karnataka. (The all-India figure is around 1.2 lakh). Of these, in the state, the farmers account for about 2,000 suicides and Karnataka stands a dubious third, next only to West Bengal and Maharashtra.

But the difficulty arises when one tries to quantify the number of suicides directly related to crop loss or the burden of debt. Neither the joint legislature committee, which inquired into 67 deaths in 1997 nor the Veeresh Committee, which put the scanner on 135 deaths could come up with any concrete evidence of a co-relation between the two even in a single case.

The government is doing a great disservice to the farming community by announcing a compensation of Rs1 lakh to the next of kin of a farmer committing suicide, as it has turned into an 'incentive' for weak- minded persons to take their own lives, causing untold hardship to the families involved. There was a hue and cry when the Veeresh Committee suggested doing away with such compensation unless certified by the district magistrate about the exact cause of death.

The legislature committee too – in which several of the present ministers were members – voiced itself against a quick-fix formula of compensation and suggested instead long-term remedies.

The government has a tendency to sleep over issues, which need to be addressed systematically and in a time-bound manner.

Two excellent reports of Dr Dwarakinath and Dr Veeresh, both former vice-chancellors of University of Agriculture Science, Bangalore, have been gathering dust as the hi-tech government has little time for the low-tech issues concerning farmers. Apart from a revolving fund for market intervention, none of the other recommendations has been implemented with any seriousness, with the result the farmers are left at the mercy of the vagaries of nature and the whims of their desperation.

The grandiose Rs 856 crore "package of reliefs to farmers" the government has come up and grabbed the headlines the next day, is nothing but an eyewash as it is full of gaping holes. There is hardly any relief for small and marginal farmers who account for over 80 per cent.

The government claims to have waived Rs 331 crore outstanding to Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) from users of irrigation pump sets, but a substantial chunk of it had already been declared irrecoverable. Rs 107 crore is shown towards "full remission of water rates for the year 2002-03", when only a miniscule has been collected in the last 50 years. And the package includes Rs 200 crore for market intervention, when in reality, only Rs 80 crore has been provided.

The hard reality is that big figures and fake numbers, however nicely packaged, will not stop suicides. They will only tighten the noose around the neck of an uncaring government.

(Courtesy: Vijay Times)