Distressed Kolar Farmers on the Struggle Path

The bright yellow chrysanthemums and marigolds, fragrant jasmine and rose that can paint a world bereft of emotions have failed to add colour to the lives of the farmers who cultivate them with great toil and at great risk.  Floriculture farmers were getting as low as Rs.100/- for a 40 Kg bag of marigold or chrysanthemum. Due to shortage of water farmers are forced to use new methods of floriculture which increased their cost of production. At the venue of the first public meeting in Kolar- the new flower market we found sacks of flowers without buyers and also heaps of flowers dumped along with the garbage.  

What the Kisan Sangharsh Jatha witnessed throughout the stretch in Kolar District of Karnataka on the sixth day of the Jatha was a state of despair and acute distress. As the Jatha moved from Bangalore Rural to Kolar it made a brief stop at Narsapur where silk growers gave a reception at the Silk Producer’s Co-operative Society.  The region once famed for silk also saw a gradual destruction of the silk growers as the reduction of import duty on raw silk from 30% to 5% led to dumping of silk from China leading to a price crash. Volatile world market prices also lead to drastic fluctuations and transfer of the burden of price crash to farmers while profits accrue to the big capitalists. The government policies are made to cater to the interests of big players in the silk industry who prefer cheaper Chinese silk that is apparently easier to weave.

The farmers in Narsapur also explained how the vegetable growers in the region were in a precarious condition.  They are getting only Rs. 2-3/Kg for tomatoes and this was as low as Rs.1/Kg some time ago. This does not meet even their plucking charges or transportation charges forcing them to dump the ripened tomatoes on the streets. There are no agro-processing units or cold storage facilities in the public sector to help farmers. Drought and absence of irrigation facilities have added to the distress of the peasantry. The Government has failed to provide any relief to the farmers of this region.

The region was earlier known for abundance of silk and milk. The plight of dairy farmers is not very different from the silk growers. They get very low prices and with easier imports of cheap milk products from Europe and other parts of the world as well as the entry of FDI in food processing this sector is under threat. Farmers, a large number of them women, who used to supplement their meager incomes from agriculture through dairying, are now a worried lot. The vigilante “Gau Rakshak” groups and communal mobilization calling for ban on beef has closed doors for the farmers to sell their old cattle and buy new cattle or invest in the next season. The menace of stray cattle and destruction of crops also looms large.

The Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (affiliated to AIKS) decided to make crop-based mobilization and formed the Silk Producers’ Struggle Committee. AIKS led many massive struggles at Central Silk Board, Bangalore as well as at Parliament and also held a Silk Farmers’ Convention in Delhi. Similarly it has organized dairy farmers and poultry farmers.

The Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha has been in the forefront of fighting against caste oppression in the region and mobilized people against the Kambalpalli massacre in which seven Dalits were burned alive in broad daylight by casteist forces. It has also taken up the issue of Dalit land right in a big way. A large number of Bagair Hukum cultivators have rallied under the red flag struggling for land rights.

Jatha received enthusiastic receptions at Kolar, Mulbagal and Srinivasapura and halted at Chintamani for the day. The Jatha leader and U Basavaraja, General secretary KPRS as well as GC Bayyareddy,Vice President KPRS addressed the meetings explaining the purpose of the Jathas, exposing the anti-farmer policies and calling for united struggles against them. Representatives of Dalit Sangharsh Samiti, Aam Aadmi Party, Janata Dal greeted the Jatha. Anganwadi workers, ASHA workers, Mid-Day Meal workers, AIAWU, AIDWA, DYFI, SFI and CITU activists were present in large numbers in every venue.