Crops wither for want of water around Nachanvel-Pishor, farmers worried over debts and household costs

Farmers in the Nachanvel area are facing one trouble after another. Crops raised with hard labour and borrowed money are drying up for lack of water. Farmers are watching a crop that was almost ready to harvest wither before their eyes, and their worry is growing by the day.

Farmers spent heavily on seed, fertiliser, pesticides, ploughing and labour. Some borrowed from traders, while others took loans to raise their crops. They had hoped for a good harvest that would let them clear all their dues. With the crops now drying up without water, those hopes are in danger of being washed away.

Growing worry over household expenses is making matters worse. On one side, the standing crop in the field is drying up and the hope of earning from it is shrinking. On the other, the cost of groceries, essentials and daily needs keeps rising.

Farm produce is not fetching a fair price, the crop is slipping out of their hands, and the prices of household goods are climbing. How are farmers to get by? This is the question on the minds of many farmers in the Nachanvel-Pishor area. They need money to run the kitchen, for their children's education, for treatment of illness, for fodder and water for their animals, and to invest in farming again for the next season. But farming, their main source of income, is in trouble.

Farmers are exhausted from tallying up the loans taken for farming, the dues to traders, the money owed for seed, fertiliser and pesticides, and the daily household expenses. They are asking how they will keep their households going if nothing is left in hand after a full year of labour. The administration needs to pay urgent attention to the farmers' plight. The department concerned should visit the fields, inspect the crops and prepare panchnamas.

The question of fodder and water for livestock is also becoming serious. With less water available, farmers are anxious about where to water their cattle and where to find fodder. Farmers have to shoulder the responsibility for their animals along with that for their families.

There is no income from the fields, but household expenses do not stop. The question of fodder and water for animals has now become the top concern. Farmers are therefore demanding that the government help them and that the administration now reach the edge of their fields.