Archdiocese backs cotton farmers’ protest

(December 30, 2010) More than 5,000 debt-ridden cotton growers in western India Wednesday protested against their exclusion from a government relief package. The federal and Maharashtra state governments recently announced a joint relief package of 16 billion rupees (US$360 million), but excluded the cotton growers of the state’s Vidarbha region. The protest was held at Pandhar Kanwada, a village in Yavatmal district. The farmers demanded the federal government immediately intervene to bring them relief and help to lead a dignified life. The protestors included widows of farmers who have committed suicide because of crop failure and mounting pressure from money lenders. The Maharashtra government recently acknowledged that 4,427 farmers have ended their lives in the past decade. However, Church people and others working in the region say the death toll is three times the government figure. Kishore Tiwari, president of an NGO that works among the farmers, says the region would see more suicides if the state fails to act. He said the new package covers only food and vegetable growers and ignores the sizeable cotton sector. Tiwari said his group would launch an indefinite road blockade in the region from January 30 unless the government redresses “the burning issues of the distressed cotton growers.” A Church official in Nagpur archdiocese said the Church supports the protest since the farmers need help to restart their shattered lives. “The Church has been promoting sustainable sources of income for the farmers after their crops failed successively,” said Salesian Sister Daya Mathew, who directs the archdiocese’s social work.