are the ways to
go back to
being a healthy
agrarian country.
Brinda Suri tells
the story of the
Indian farmer
The fields have been second home for 22-year-old Mohammad Salim of Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh. His father is a marginal farmer who, till quite recently, had been able to support his family of five very capably. Salim, the eldest among three siblings, preferred skipping school and working on the farm much to the chagrin of his father, who repeatedly told him that in the coming years, the farm would not yield much income and he should educate himself for a better future. Teenager Salim chose not to pay heed to his father’s advice as he felt they lived reasonably well and the hearth was always brimming with flavoursome food.
His village was his life; there was enough work to do in the fields; it reaped a good harvest; he had friends aplenty to share secrets; grudges were none, and he felt no need to stretch himself.
Come 2019 and I spot Salim in Chandigarh. He’s moving the paintbrush in his hand at furious speed as he applies a coat of primer to the exterior walls of a house in an affluent locality. The contractor has told him he needs to be quick with plastic emulsions as they dry rapidly and dawdling work will not lead to the fine finish clients demand.
The other life
“In the past two years I’ve dabbled in a few professions,” Salim tells me. “I learnt the art of DJ and managed the music at weddings, which often took me beyond my village. I also worked as an apprentice with a motor mechanic. It’s the first time I’ve come to a big city, and here I’ve picked up the paintbrush. My sister’s marriage is coming up and we need a free flow of cash,” he says, wistfully adding, “Abba was right, the fields can no longer support our basic needs. Even so, if given a choice, I would happily till the soil, wait for seeds to germinate, and watch new life emerge.”
The story of young Salim is the story of the Indian farmer. Dwindling farm-holdings, repeated crop failure, decreased income and an existence on loans have made the farmer debt-ridden and dented his pride. The only option for many is to sell the land and move to the city as migrant labourers or become daily-wage earners on their own land. Some prefer the ultimate step: taking their life...
More in: www.deccanherald.com
No comments:
Post a Comment