Damned farmer & condemned citizen

Gunbir Singh

Chairperson, World Wide Fund for Nature, Punjab

IN Yavatmal, over 20 farmers died last month from pesticide poisoning. Nineteen more workers lost their vision and scores were taken to hospitals in critical conditions. They did not drink pesticide in order to commit suicide, but were merely spraying it. The government woke up momentarily from its siesta to provide lip service and a few inconsequential headlines were made.

One wonders why such a grave tragedy did not bring about a disruptive change. Is our society so grossly dehumanised to horror? Or are we primarily escapist in our approach to actionables? Perhaps, it is simply existential inertia and apathetic governance. This definitely will allow larger tragedies to happen as the real massacre is the silent one happening across the nation. While the state slumbers on, toxic pesticides banned overseas find their way regularly into the hands of cultivators across the nation. Factories in India reap profits as well from the manufacture of such banned toxins under the gaze of pliable regulators.

From surface pest control — the washable kind — we have graduated to systemic pesticides which get into the molecules of the plant (and vegetables and fruit) as it grows. The life cycle of these wretched chemicals is usually much more than the shelf life of the produce, and is thus ingested by people unknowingly as food. And let's not forget the curing carbides and gases used for fruit ripening, the dollops of preservatives in processed foods, and adulteration of foodstuff substituting the nutritious and natural with cheaper anythings. 

Grower faces toxic onslaught

It is the grower who faces the maximum toxic onslaught, though. Desperate to make ends meet, mostly illiterate, deeply marginalised, he is at the mercy of the commission agent who funds his purchase, the shopkeeper who provides credit, or simply peer suggestion. Thus spraying undeterminable toxins is rampant. The government agricultural advisory machinery is largely inattentive and ineffective. Further, this advisorial efficacy is deeply infected by seller fiduciary perusal and greed. The user is devoid of educated options.

Impact on consumer

The consumer, on the other hand, buys his food by its look and feel. The growing awareness through print and social media notwithstanding, he does not have visible options. All he knows is that disease is growing. The fact that sperm counts are diminishing, fatigue amongst youth is growing, congenital defects are mounting as children simply die and immune systems are compromised. Research is showcasing random evidences. The medical fraternity only talks in whispers, while life goes on elsewhere till karma befalls.  

Central India and the tribal forested areas (what is left of them) are still better. The growers here are unwilling to invest in change and stick to their natural ways. So are those in higher Himalayan reaches that are beyond the easy reach of Big Pharma. 

Punjab, the granary of the nation, has just two per cent of national arable land, but uses 15% of pesticides consumed countrywide. This obnoxious dosage does not increase productivity, but depletes the returns from a shrivelling farm economy. 

Havoc spreads to kids

Meanwhile, this silent killer continues to spread havoc. All have heard of the cancer trains that travel with loads of patients from Punjab to Bikaner hospitals. What is known to few, however, is that the incidence of cancer has doubled among children in Punjab since 2009. And we are not even mentioning the ingress of manifold other symptoms and diseases caused primarily by growing chemical infestation in the air, the water and the soil. It is this degradation that is taking the largest toll.

While governments are subsidising oncology treatment, little is being done to promote organic cultivation, ensure farmer education or create models for alternative cropping or augmenting farm incomes. This cocktail is causing havoc. 

The killing fields of the North are thriving demons of death, and ecology is at the receiving end with land parched due to thirsty crops and overdrawing of water. The wrath of the unthinking human mind has scored over the generosity of nature. The balance is tilted precariously. This has been a prolonged slumber of governance. The penance is for all citizens to pay.