CPI(M) peasants' wing plans nationwide protests on farmer suicides

NEW DELHI: The peasants' wing of CPI(M) has decided to hold region-level agitations next month to draw the attention of state governments to the plight of families of farmers who committed suicide in the wake of the "agrarian crisis", triggered by their "wrong policies".

The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) campaign will be organised in 13 states, including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, which have registered maximum number of farmer suicides in the country.

The region-level agitations follow a two-day sit-in at Jantar Mantar in the national capital earlier this month when the family members of around 200 farmers who had committed suicide joined the campaign.

The peasants' organisation said more than 3.20 lakh farmers have killed themselves over the past two-and-a-half decades and that the number of distress suicide has gone up by 26 per cent in the first year of the Modi government.

"We held protest in Delhi and managed to bring the issue on the national agenda. But it was not possible for every distressed family to come to the national capital.

"So, to keep the momentum of the campaign, we will now hold state-level meetings of kin (of deceased farmers) to put pressure on the authorities," AIKS general secretary and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Hannan Mollah said.

Mollah said AIKS intensify its struggle seeking at least Rs 10 lakh compensation to farmers' relatives.

"Wrong policies of governments have caused the present agrarian crisis. However, the authorities are in denial mode. However, we are firm with the demand of minimum Rs 10 lakh compensation for the affected families," he said.

Mollah reiterated that Left-backed farmers' bodies will continue their agitation seeking withdrawal of the Centre's "anti-farmer" land acquisition ordinance.

Besides adequate compensation, AIKS has been demanding waiving of outstanding loans of the deceased farmers, setting up of a Debt Relief Commission on the lines of the one in Kerala, ban on FDI in agriculture, and right to education and health for farmers etc.