Maharashtra and Karnataka top list of states with maximum suicide by farmers: NCRB data

As per the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau, Maharashtra and Karnataka are the two states which continue to remain on top of farmers suicide tally in 2019. The NCRB data said that a total of 10,281 persons involved in farming sector have committed suicides during 2019, accounting for 7.4 per cent of total suicides victims in the country.

New Delhi: Maharashtra and Karnataka are the two states which continue to remain on top of farmers suicide tally in 2019, according to the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

The report further claimed that such incidents by farmers have also marginally decreased across the country.

Significantly, certain states and UTs namely, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Delhi, Lakshadweep and Puducherry reported zero suicides of farmers and cultivators as well as agricultural labourers.

Reacting over the report, senior CPI (M) leader and general secretary of All India Kisan Sabha, Hannan Mollah refuted such claims and said that such report is false propaganda of the present government.

“This is a false claim. This is not an achievement. Such incidents are happening in the country. The government has failed to look after the woes of the farmers,” said Mollah to ETV Bharat.

He said that incidents of suicide are happening in large and major states and it's happening in few other smaller states too but it's not getting reported.

“However, in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee government is trying to hide such cases and there is manipulation,” said Mollah.

He said that the incumbent central government is running an anti-farmer agenda.

“We have been demanding for loan waiver and fair price of agriculture products which can reduce farmers' stress,” said Mollah.

The NCRB data said that a total of 10,281 persons involved in farming sector (consisting of 5,957 farmers, cultivators and 4,324 agricultural labourers) have committed suicides during 2019, accounting for 7.4 per cent of total suicides victims (1,39,123) in the country.

Out of 5,957 farmers and cultivators, a total of 5,563 were male and 394 were female.

The 2019 statistics of farmers and agricultural workers, however, witnessed a decline from 10,349 in 2018 and 10,665 in 2017.

The data showed that the number of farmers who took their own lives has increased in the last year compared to the 2018 figure of 5,763 while the number of agricultural labourers, in this case, has decreased from 4,586

NCRB, however, does not provide reasons for the suicides.

“This data depicts only the profession of persons who have committed suicide and has no linkage whatsoever to the cause of suicide,” the NCRB said in its report.

Among the states, Maharashtra has the highest number of farmer and agricultural workers dying by suicide at 3,927, which was an increase from 3,594 reported in 2018.

The state had reported 3,701 suicides in 2017.

As per the NCRB statistics, in Gujarat, where 118 people engaged in the farming sector took their own lives, only three were farmers while the rest were agricultural labourers.

“In Tamil Nadu, 421 agricultural workers and six farmers committed suicide. In Kerala, 128 out of 150 suicides were that of agricultural labourers. Madhya Pradesh had 399 labourers and 142 farmers committing suicide while the figure for Chhattisgarh was 266 and 233 respectively,” the NCRB said in its report.