12 farmers commit suicide in Punjab

[dallysingh101]

7 hours ago, SinghPunjabSingh said:

@ Dally Paji given that the major export commodity of Punjab (wheat) is purchased by Delhi for half the price it openly sells for on the open market globally (imagine the Muslims selling oil at half price and their economies failing as a result) then how would you foresee suicides ever ending in such a scenario (in the absence of parchaar that suicide and hunger strikes are not condoned by Sikhi)?

It's even deeper than that. If it isn't already, India is getting capable of importing such crops. Plus global geopolitical events can impact the market.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/17/infographic-russia-ukraine-and-the-global-wheat-supply-interactive

  

No one really cares a hoot for Panjab. At best we have apathy, but frequently antipathy. The only thing I can think of (for farmers) is crop diversification. I go to the health stores or the asian supermarkets and see lots of stuff on sale for good money like karelay (more expensive than meat!), ashwaganda, 'organic' turmeric etc. etc.  We know sukha has grown into a billion dollar market within a few years too. Even opium can be processed for legal medical use. Yeah and none of this is without risk. That's where support is required from the Panjab government and dharmic institutes. Serious professional economic planning and development is conspicuously missing. Dhamric institutes need to broaden away from just parchaar (mostly to the converted). But another big problem is that sociopathic corruption that's become a norm. And even if any initiatives get implemented people are likely to just use pilfer and horde funds rather than use it to facilitate development.

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I also know it's complicated in terms of the culture in rural Panjab. Even some of my family are 'landowners' out there now. No one is under any illusion, things change very slowly (if at all) in rural villages. Plus given the aforementioned antipathy as well as our own crabs in a bucket mentality, development will be difficult. But what choice is there but too adapt to survive? 

Again though, we should squarely face the truth of our own pilfering donations that make there way to our premier institutes (like SGPC) for selfish and myopic reasons. We've become so hardened as a people that we can watch our own struggle and perish, even though we do have some funds to develop.  

[PreetiD]

khalsa aid did a 4 year campaign fundraising for farmers as a part of focus punjab. They gave heart breaking speeches on the conditions the farmers are in. i wonder how much of the funds raised and direct debits actually reached those farmers?