363 farmer suicides this year, 56 in Punjab:Centre

New Delhi, July 29

About 363 farmers across the country have committed suicide so far this year due to agrarian reasons, including 56 in Punjab, Parliament was informed today.

According to the data placed by Minister of State for Agriculture Parshottam Rupala in the Rajya Sabha, a maximum of 241 farmer suicides were reported from Karnataka, followed by Maharashtra (57).

The minister said this data had been furnished by the states, not by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The latter has published such data only till 2014.

In 2015, the number of such cases was 107 in Karnataka, 1,841 in Maharashtra and 46 in Punjab, while the figure for the country was 2,548.

Replying to a query on the steps taken by the Centre to rehabilitate families of the farmers who committed suicide, the minister said, “The government’s strategy is to focus on the farmers’ welfare by making farming viable.” — PTI