Even as they grapple with growing financial and climatic uncertainties, the farmers of Kuttanad have begun returning to their fields with the onset of monsoon.
According to various farmer collectives, preparatory works for launching the monsoon crop called Virippu have reached the halfway stage in most parts of the region. Besides preparing the land and sowing seeds, the scope of works taken up this time includes strengthening the outer bunds of polder networks to mitigate the impact of seasonal flooding.
“Paddy cultivation serves as the sole source of income to a majority of the farmers in Kuttanad. A few among them, however, have decided to abstain from cultivation this time as a mark of protest against the delay in clearing the dues. This will have an adverse impact on the local economy while also raising the risk of flooding,” said Sonichen Antony Pulinkunnu, coordinator, Paddy Farmers Protection Council in Kuttanad.
He sought to attribute the delay in clearing the dues primarily to a lack of coordination between the Finance and Civil Supplies departments. “For instance, the farmers who were forced to open accounts with the Kerala Bank to get their dues last season are now required to open accounts with some other banks this time,” he explained.
With little help from the State to overcome their financial woes, the small-scale farmers have now turned to money-lenders and borrowed sums at exorbitant rate of interests to carry out the farming operations. The move is expected to leave them further entangled in a web of loans.
As per official estimates, authorities are left to clear about 35% of the payment due to the paddy farmers of Kuttanad. In Alappuzha, about 23% of the farmers are still waiting to receive their dues, while in Kottayam, this figure stands around 30%.
“Payment distribution has been expedited with the State government roping in two more banks for processing the paddy receipt sheets. With this, we hope to complete the process without much delay,” said a senior Supplyco official.
The farmers, however, complain that the disbursal of money through the two banks that joined belatedly is yet to gather momentum.
“This practice of paying procurement dues through bank loans is not a sustainable option as the banks may withdraw from it anytime. It is high time that the State government made a budgetary allocation towards paddy procurement,” said Aby Ipe, district general secretary of the Karshaka Congress, Kottayam.
