Farmers' suicides have increased dramatically in Maharashtra, particularly in the Vidarbha region. The suicide rate for farmers in the state increased from 15 per 100,000 in 1995 to 57 per 100,000 in 2004. Farmers face significant economic hardships due to factors like declining cotton prices, low crop yields, lack of access to credit, and unreliable rainfall. Bold public policy initiatives and greater civil society engagement are needed to address the agricultural crisis and reduce farmers' vulnerabilities.

1. Farmers’ Suicides in Maharashtra
An agrarian crisis has precipitated a spate of suicides in Maharashtra. The suicide mortality
rate for farmers in the state has increased from 15 in 1995 to 57 in 2004. The rain-dependent
cotton growing farmers of Vidarbha are faced with declining profitability because of dumping
in the global market by the US, low import tariffs, failure of the Monopoly Cotton
Procurement Scheme and withdrawal of the state (resulting in declining public investment in
agriculture, poor government agriculture extension services and the diminishing role of formal
credit institutions). The farmer now depends on the input dealer for advice, leading to
supplier-induced demand, and on informal sources of credit, which result in a greater interest
burden. In short, the farmer is faced with yield, price, credit, income and weather uncertainties.
The way out is to merge bold public policy initiatives with civil society engagement.
SRIJIT MISHRA
F
armers’ suicides have been receiving a lot of social and accounted for 1.3 per cent of the total deaths. Suicide is a social
public policy attention, particularly in the states of Andhra phenomenon that differs across gender groups and it is appro-
Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab and Maharashtra, in priate to discuss patterns in males and females separately. In 2001,
recent years.1 A brief review of issues indicates that the depen- the age-adjusted suicide mortality rate (SMR, suicide deaths per
dence on agriculture is largely among marginal and small farmers 1,00,000 persons) for Maharashtra was 20.6 for males and 12.6
and agricultural labourers. These groups also bear the brunt of for females whereas for India it was 14.0 for males and 9.5 for
the unavailability of water and its associated yield uncertainty. females.3
Linking of the national market with international markets has In Maharashtra, the age-adjusted SMR for males increased
also increased price uncertainty, particularly in crops like cotton. from 17.4 in 1995 to 20.3 in 2004 and that for females decreased
The absence of a formal rural financial market also leads to a from 13.6 in 1995 to 10.8 in 2004 (Table 1). The absolute
dependence on informal sources with a greater interest burden. numbers of male suicides decreased in 1996, but thereafter they
The marginal and small farmer is, however, willing to experiment have been increasing. For females, the absolute number of
and take risks. But, the farmer is not able to visualise that a bad suicides decreased in 1996 and then increased in the next two
monsoon leading to a crop failure or a glut in the market can years, but have been declining since 1999. The age-adjusted
push him into indebtedness and a crashing of dreams. This paper SMR for males has not always been increasing indicating that
discusses farmers’ suicides in Maharashtra, which is relatively the increase in the number of suicides has not been commen-
higher in certain districts of Vidarbha. surate with the increase in population. Between 2001 and 2004
Suicide is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon. Some the age-adjusted SMR for males has been in the range of 20-
important correlates can be identified either in the neurobiologi- 21. The decline in absolute female suicides when the population
cal domain [Mann 2002] or in the socio-economic domain has been rising explains the declining age-adjusted SMR for
(Durkheim 2002 (1897)]. The former are predisposing in nature. females. Across divisions, Amravati and Nagpur have relatively
They are internal factors that exist in the individual. All those higher SMRs.
identified with these factors do not commit suicide. The presence The total number of farmer suicides in Maharashtra increased
of additional factors that are external to the individual becomes from 1,083 in 1995 to 4,147 in 2004. The increase was largely
crucial. This takes us to the socio-economic factors that are because of a 288 per cent increase in male farmer suicides from
precipitating in nature – they can act as a trigger. These can be 978 to 3,799. During this period, male farmer suicides as a
either systemic or idiosyncratic. The current exercise identifies proportion of total male suicides in Maharashtra increased from
important socio-economic risk factors. 14 per cent to 38 per cent. We can arrive at the SMR for farmers
The rest of the paper is organised as follows. The suicide by normalising it with the population of cultivators. The SMR
scenario and agrarian situation in Maharashtra are discussed in for male farmers increased by nearly four times from 15 in 1995
Sections I and II respectively. Micro level analysis based on field to 57 in 2004, but for females the trend fluctuated to reach a
survey in the districts of Wardha, Washim and Yavatmal is peak of 12 in 2001, but thereafter it has been declining. For
discussed in Section III. Concluding remarks are in Section IV. males, the ratio of SMR for farmers to age-adjusted SMR was
lower than unity in 1995, but thereafter it has been greater than
I unity and has been steadily increasing, and in 2004 the SMR
Suicide Scenario in Maharashtra for farmers was 2.8 times greater than that for the general
population.
Suicide data in India is compiled through police records.2 In The SMR for farmers across divisions of Maharashtra during
2001, Maharashtra constituted about 9.4 per cent of the all India 2001-04 indicates relatively higher suicide deaths than the state
population but accounted for 13.5 per cent of the total suicide average for males in Amravati and Nagpur divisions and for
deaths in the country. Suicides accounted for 2 per cent of the females in Amravati, Aurangabad and Nashik divisions (Table 2).
total deaths in the state whereas at the all India level suicides, Across divisions, the ratio of farmers-to-age-adjusted SMR is
1538 Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006

2. the maximum in Amravati among males and in Nashik among In Vidarbha, particularly in Amravati division and in the
females. Nagpur has a higher SMR for farmers, which is lower selected districts, the cropping pattern indicates a shift in area
only than in Amravati, but the ratio of farmers to age-adjusted from cereals (particularly jowar) and cotton towards soyabean
SMR is much lower. This indicates that in a relative sense the and to a lesser extent pulses. There is a shift, but with the absence
SMR in Nagpur is also high across other subgroups of population of viable alternatives, Cotton continues to be a major cash crop
which are not self-employed in farming. accounting for 33 per cent of area in Wardha, 21 per cent of
the area in Washim and 46 per cent of the area in Yavatmal in
II triennium ending (TE) 2002-03. Cotton and soyabean are the two
Agrarian Scenario in Maharashtra important cash crops of the region.
In 2004-05, the year relevant for our primary survey, produc-
In Maharashtra, the contribution of agriculture and allied tion of cotton was a record high worldwide as also in India.
activities to the net state domestic product in current prices came Maharashtra’s production at 52 lakh bales showed a 68 per cent
down from 40 per cent in 1960-61 to 13 per cent in 2004-05, increase over the previous year’s 31 lakh bales. This is largely
whereas as per the 2001 Census 55 per cent of the total workers because of a record yield of 297 kg/hectare in the state. Regardless
are either cultivators or agricultural labourers. Between1993-94 of this, Maharashtra’s productivity at 64 per cent of the national
and 2003-04, the linear trend growth rate of Maharashtra’s gross average continues to be among the lowest. This growth would
state domestic product (GSDP) at 4.8 per cent per annum was have bypassed Amravati division where the monsoon in May-
lower than that of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) at 5.8 October 2004 was largely deficient. In the selected districts,
per cent per annum.4 rainfall fell short of the normal by 22 per cent in Wardha, 31
The GSDP of agriculture’s in Maharashtra at 1993-94 prices, per cent in Washim and 51 per cent in Yavatmal. The cotton
increased from Rs 21,750 crore for the triennium ending (TE) farmer in this region faced both price as well as yield shocks
1995-96 to Rs 24,988 crore for TE 2002-03. The eight major simultaneously.
crop groups in terms of gross area under cultivation are cereals On cotton prices, there are a number of other relevant factors.
with nearly half of it under jowar, pulses (nearly three-tenths
Table 1: Age-Adjusted Suicide Mortality Rates for Farmers
under tur), fibres (most of it cotton), oilseeds (nearly half of it in Maharashtra, 1995-2004
under soyabean), sugar cane, fruits and vegetables, condiments
Year Age Adjusted (5+) SMR for Farmers Ratio of SMR for
and spices and drugs and narcotics. SMR Farmers to
The share of estimated gross value added is lower compared Age-Adjusted SMR
to the share of area for cereals (particularly low for jowar), pulses, Males Females Males Females Males Females
fibres (mostly cotton) and oilseeds (Table 3). In TE 2002-03, 1995 17.4 13.6 14.7 1.8 0.84 0.13
cereals and pulses accounted for 64 per cent of the gross area 1996 16.0 12.6 23.5 7.1 1.47 0.56
under cultivation, but contributed to only 27 of the gross value 1997 17.7 13.8 23.9 5.6 1.35 0.40
added. Cotton accounts for 15 per cent area, but contributes to 1998 18.9 14.4 29.0 8.5 1.53 0.59
1999 18.5 13.9 30.6 6.9 1.66 0.50
only 9 per cent of the gross value added in agriculture. Oilseeds 2000 19.6 12.9 37.3 10.1 1.90 0.78
account for 12 per cent share of area and 10 per cent of the gross 2001 20.6 12.6 44.1 11.5 2.14 0.91
value added but for soyabean the share of gross value added is 2002 20.3 11.9 47.3 10.8 2.33 0.91
2003 20.6 11.3 50.8 9.4 2.46 0.83
slightly higher (5.7 per cent) than its share of area. Sugar cane 2004 20.3 10.8 57.2 7.4 2.81 0.68
accounts for less than 3 per cent of the area under cultivation,
but 17 per cent of the gross value added. Fruits and vegetables Notes: SMR = suicide mortality rate; age-adjusted SMR takes into
consideration 5+ population only. SMR for farmers is calculated by
account for less than 5 per cent of the area under cultivation, normalising suicides for those self-employed in agriculture on the
but nearly 36 per cent of the gross value added. population for cultivators. Year-wise population for each subgroup
Between the annual average of TE 1995-96 and TE 2002-03, was interpolated/extrapolated and adjusted to give estimates that are
the incremental gross value added is positive for pulses, soyabean, subgroup consistent.
Sources: (i) Census of India, 1991 and 2001; (ii) Accidental Deaths and
sugar cane and fruits and vegetables; it has declined for cereals, Suicides in India, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999, National Crime
cotton, condiments and spices and drugs and narcotics. The Records Bureau, New Delhi; Communication from CID, Pune; and
increase in incremental value for pulses, soyabean, sugar cane www.indiastat.com (accessed October 5, 2005).
and fruits and vegetables is largely explained by an increase in
Table 2: Suicide Mortality Rate for Farmers across
area under cultivation, but for specific crops like tur, soyabean, Divisions in Maharashtra, 2001-04
banana, grape and tomato the share of other factors like yield,
Divisions/ SMR for Farmers Ratio of SMR for Farmers to SMR
or advantages in relative prices also contribute. Districts for Age-Adjusted Population
The decline in incremental value for cereals is contributed by Males Females Males Females
a decline in area as well as other factors. Condiments/spices show
Amravati division 115.6 24.3 2.8 1.1
a decline despite a favourable impact of other factors because Aurangabad division 47.6 9.2 2.5 0.8
such areas might have shifted to more value addition crops under Konkan division 25.1 7.7 2.0 0.8
fruits and vegetables. The decline of drugs and narcotics could Nagpur division 55.5 8.5 2.0 0.6
Nashik division 36.6 12.0 2.2 1.4
be indicative of the legal hassles associated with its cultivation.
Pune division 34.7 3.6 1.6 0.4
In cotton, the incremental value has declined, but there has Maharashtra state 48.1 9.1 2.4 0.8
been an increase in area. With increasing yield, it suggests that
Note: The SMR for farmers are calculated with the assumption that cultivators
the positive effect of an increase in area has largely been offset as a proportion of 5+ years population is the same as it is in 2001. This
by unfavourable relative prices. In other words, the profitability is likely to underestimate SMR for farmers.
of cotton cultivation is declining. Source: As in Table 1.
Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006 1539

3. Excess international supply at a lower price is also because of are likely to be outstanding debts, not current loans. The per
direct and indirect subsidies leading to dumping by the US. hectare loan in the selected districts is relatively lower [Shah
During the period 1998 to 2003, cotton export prices for the US 2006]. A recent study of Yavatmal indicates that more than half
were lower than their cost of production by more than 50 per the members are defaulters with their credit lines choked from
cent on average [Murphy, Lilliston and Lake 2005]. Domestic one to many years [Sarangi 2004]. This is so because over the
policies in India have led to removal of quantitative restrictions years, the cooperative credit institutions were faced with a number
and subsequently the reduction of import tariff from 35 per cent of problems – high interest rates, accounting practices were not
in 2001-02 to 5 per cent in 2002-03. All these exposed domestic rationalised and no professional management to mention a few
prices to the volatility of international prices that has been [Government of India 2004].
adversely affecting the cotton farmer. Similarly, excessive cotton An important issue raised in our focus group discussions
exports leading to an increase in yarn prices can adversely affect (FGDs) conducted in 98 villages with an average participant size
the handloom and powerloom weavers [Ghosh 2005]. The of six to seven (minimum-two, maximum-nine) is that current
Monopoly Cotton Procurement Scheme (MCPS) in operation operational loans are likely to be from moneylenders. In 70 per
since 1972-73 in Maharashtra was meant to stabilise prices, but cent of the FGDs, the availability of the informal loans in the
over time a plethora of problems and cumulative losses have village was mentioned. One participant’s remark during an FGD
rendered it non-functional [see also Shroff 2006]. In short, when will elucidate the socio-economic dominance of the moneylender.
the farmer is being exposed to the global market, there is no The participant said that: “Gentleman, you will go away after
mechanism that will guard him/her against price volatility. this discussion. It is we who have to stay in the village. Please
In 2004-05, the cost of production for cotton in Maharashtra do not probe further into the details. Further revelation by us
according to the Commission on Agricultural Costs and Prices will make our stay in the village difficult.”
was Rs 2,216 per quintal, but the Minimum Support Price (MSP) Informal loan transactions could be in ‘dedhi’. The debtor has
was only Rs 1,960.5 The MSP indicated is for long staple variety to return the loan around harvest (within four to six months) and
of fair average quality and is assured only when the crop is sold pay Rs 150 for a loan of Rs 100. Similarly, there is ‘sawai’
in authorised centres. Thus, even if one includes the additional (payment of Rs 125 for a loan of Rs 100). Another popular form
advance price of Rs 500 paid in Maharashtra in that year, which of loans for agricultural and social purposes is at an interest rate
was discontinued in 2005-06, the MSP is still likely to fall short of Rs 10/Rs 5 per month. Non-payment of loan leads to rewriting
of costs or at most break even.6 The MSP for jowar also falls of a fresh loan with some additional credit being given during
short of the cost of production in Maharashtra, but the MSP for the start of the next agricultural season.
soyabean and tur are greater than the cost of production. These A conventional form of collateral is land. Creditors now consider
observations are in line with shifts in cropping patterns and also it risky because suicides can lead to cancellation of such contracts,
to the changes in incremental value additions indicated above. and hence, insist on sale of land with a verbal (not legal) promise
The state’s role as a facilitator of agricultural growth is ex- that it will be sold back to the debtor after the loan is repaid.
amined by looking at public investment in agriculture, the rural If required, legal registration expenses on both counts are borne
financial market and agricultural extension, among others. In the by the debtor. Land seizure/mortgage was mentioned in 17 per
absence of data for Maharashtra, a perusal of the all India situation cent of FGDs.
suggests that gross fixed capital formation in agriculture as a Some of the moneylenders would also be traders. The loan taken
proportion of the GDP declined from 3.1 per cent during 1980- could be for purchase of an input and repayment through sale
85 (Sixth Plan) to 1.6 per cent during 1997-2002 (Ninth Plan). of produce. Interlocking of credit, input and output markets are
During the same period, gross fixed capital formation in agri- not necessarily enforced by the trader-moneylender, but
culture as a proportion of total gross fixed capital formation
declined from 13.1 per cent to 7.4 per cent in India, the proportion Table 3: Crop-wise Share of Estimated Gross Value Added
of plan expenditure towards agriculture and allied activities (EGVA) to Share of Area (TE 2002-03) and Incremental EGVA
declined from 6.1 per cent to 4.5 per cent in India and from 6 (TE 2002-03 over TE 1995-96)
per cent to 3.3 per cent in Maharashtra. Crop Group Share of EGVA Incremental EGVA, TE 2002-03 over
Recent trends with regard to agricultural credit in Maharashtra to Share of Area TE 1995-96
TE 2002-03 Level Area Effect Other Effect
from 1991 to 2004 indicate the following. Credit utilisation to (Lakh Rupees) (Per Cent) (Per Cent)
agriculture as a proportion of total credit utilisation in the state
has declined from 20.2 per cent to 11.2 per cent – this is largely Cereals 0.38 -61868.9 -53.0 -47.0
Pulses 0.49 5743.1 98.3 1.7
offset by an increase in personal loans. Agricultural credit utilisation Fibres 0.61 -8230.5 177.5 -277.5
is shifting from rural regions to urban areas, with Mumbai’s share Oilseeds 0.85 5374.6 -358.5 458.5
having increased from 5 per cent to 48 per cent. Within agri- Sugar cane 6.05 54313.9 130.5 -30.5
culture, the share of direct finance reduced from 79 per cent to Fruits/vegetables 7.28 200564.0 205.2 -105.2
Condiments/spices 1.41 -402.9 -491.0 391.0
51 per cent. Even after excluding Mumbai, division-wise dis- Drugs/narcotics 2.78 -359.7 -82.0 -18.0
tribution shows a decline in the share of both direct and indirect Total 1.00 195133.6 -8.8 108.8
finance components of agricultural credit in Vidarbha. Notes: TE denotes triennium ending for three year annual average,
In Maharashtra, the cooperative banks have been an important Crop specific area was estimated from EGVA for crop and EGVA for
source of credit, particularly for agricultural purposes, in rural crop per hectare. Incremental EGVA comprises area and other
areas. A recent survey (59th round National Sample Survey, effects (Et-Et-k)=((At-At-k)Ot-k)+((Ot-Ot-k)At) where positive/negative
sign for shares of area/other indicate the proportion contribution to
January-December 2003) indicates that in Maharashtra nearly increase/decrease in the level and E = EGVA, A = area and O = other.
half of the loans are from cooperative societies compared to about Source: State Income of Maharashtra (Soft copy), Directorate of Economics
one-fifth for the all India average. However, much of these loans and Statistics, Mumbai, 2005.
1540 Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006

4. operating with a single trader-moneylender, would save trans- On educational status, 21 per cent were illiterate, 14 per cent
action costs to the farmer. were literate but below primary level, 26 per cent completed
Nearly 50 per cent of FGDs discussed the paucity of water. primary education but were below matriculation and the rest were
Despite delay and deficient rain, there were instances of people with higher education. On experience in farming, 24 per cent
(whole villages) opting for a second or third sowing without any had less than five years, 18 per cent had about 6-10 years and
groundwater dependence. With seed replacement being almost the remains 58 per cent had more than 10 years of experience.
complete, it contributed to additional expenses for seed. In the The three main castes are Kunbis (31 per cent), Banjaras (16
last 5-10 years there has been an increase in the number of per cent) and Baudh (9 per cent). Kunbis are the predominant
sprayings for insecticides/pesticides and an increase in the need peasant community in the selected districts and Banjaras have
and cost for fertilisers. All these added to the cost. The issue a substantial presence in Yavatmal and Karanja subdivision of
of spurious quality of inputs also came up in the discussions. Washim. The size-class of land shows that 14 per cent are
This brings forth some important points. First, the absence of marginal (0-2.5 acres), 39 per cent are small (2.5-5 acres), 21
an extension service which could have advised the farmers against per cent semi-medium (5-10 acres), 15 per cent medium (10-20
late sowing or improper use of other inputs. Second, with new acres), 4 per cent are large (20 + acres) and 7 per cent have not
technology on the anvil, there is deskilling and the farmer’s given information on their landownership.
experience becomes redundant. The private traders selling farm Superimposing aggregate caste and land-size categories on the
inputs advise the farmer on extension service. This leads to agricultural census of 1995-96, the differences in the ratios were not
supplier-induced demand. statistically significant. Nevertheless, we elucidate the following
We also came across villages from where many people have patterns. For all size-class of land, the ratios indicate relatively
migrated in search of jobs. In 14 per cent of the FGDs, difficulty higher suicides among the scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled
in getting employment or availability of work at low wages was tribes (STs) and lower among “other” castes. For all castes, the
mentioned. These not only indicate the unavailability of non- ratio of sample to population proportion indicates relatively higher
farm jobs in the study regions, but also indicate poor public suicides among the marginal size-class and small size-class of
interventions. farmers and lower suicides among the “other” size-class of farmers.
One of the important social welfare measures in the state is In 79 per cent of the cases, suicides were committed by
the Maharashtra Employment Guarantee Scheme (MEGS), which consuming insecticides. These proportions are higher than that
has been in operation since 1970s. In the inland eastern region indicated for the overall population in the selected districts. This
(consisting of all the districts of Amravati division and Wardha is so because of the easy accessibility in farming households
and Nagpur), the share of MEGS expenditure from the state’s (particularly, those cultivating cotton) to pesticides.8 A hospital
total MEGS expenditure decreased from 14.4 per cent in 2000-01 that can treat emergencies like poisoning is on an average more
to 6 per cent in 2003-04. This is much lower than the region’s than 20 km away (particularly, in Washim and Yavatmal). This
share of rural poor (23 per cent) or its share of rural population means that the time taken to reach a treatment centre in these
(17 per cent). The region’s share of item-wise expenditure between hilly regions can easily be more than an hour. This delay can
2000-01 and 2003-04 was 4.2 per cent for agriculture, 6.5 per prove fatal. Restriction on availability and toxic content of
cent for irrigation and 13.0 per cent for horticulture. In particular, pesticides and access to early treatment are important policy
it reflects poor intervention in works associated with developing parameters. Important policy lessons can be taken from Sri
agriculture either directly or indirectly through interventions in Lanka’s experience [Gunnell and Eddleston 2003].9
irrigation and horticulture.
What is intriguing is that in Yavatmal, the expenditure on esta- Table 4: Risk Factors Identified with Deceased Individual
blishment as a share of total expenditure in the state is greater than Risk Factors N=111 Per Cent
the district’s share of rural population. In Wardha the total expen-
Was the deceased indebted? 96 86.5
diture under MEGS in 2003-04 as also 2004-05, a deficient rainfall Did his economic status deteriorate before the incident? 82 73.9
year, was either on establishment or on miscellaneous accounts Did the deceased not share problems with other
only. These observation are in line with the findings mentioned in family members? 61 55.0
a recent study that MEGS has been successful as a relief measure Was there a crop failure? 45 40.5
Was there a change in his social position before
largely concentrated in the drought-prone areas of Marathwada the incident? 40 36.0
and western Maharashtra divisions of the state and has had a Did the deceased have a daughter/sister of
limited success as a poverty eradication measure [Vatsa 2005]. marriageable age? 38 34.2
Was there any suicide in the nearby villages recently? 36 32.4
Did the deceased have any addictions? 31 27.9
III Was there a change in the deceased’s behaviour
Micro Level Analysis before the incident? 29 26.1
Did the deceased have disputes with neighbours or others? 26 23.4
Did the deceased have some health problem? 23 20.7
This is based on a field survey largely conducted in Wardha, Did any death occur in the family recently before
Washim and Yavatmal districts. The village were identified based the incident? 11 9.9
on a list of farmers’ suicides for 2004 and a few cases for January Has there been any suicide previously in the family? 7 6.3
2005.7 Data from 111 suicide case (one Amravati, 21 Wardha, Are some other family members chronically ill/handicapped? 4 3.6
Average number of risk factors 4.8
29 Washim and 60 Yavatmal) and 106 non-suicide control Minimum number of risk factors 2
households spread across 105 villages form the basis of our Maximum number of risk factors 9
analysis. In our sample from suicide cases, 91 per cent were males,
Note: N indicates number of households. The risk factors are not mutually
55 per cent in the age group of 31-50 years, and 80 per cent exclusive, and hence, will not add up to 100 per cent.
were currently married. Source: Field Survey.
Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006 1541

5. A suicide is the complex interplay of multiple factors. A a reaction to get out of depression that can be associated with
number of risk factors can coexist and one particular individual some socio-economic problem.
can come across all or none of the risk factors identified by us. Change in the individual’s behaviour was identified in 26 per
In our sample, the minimum number of risk factors is two and cent of the cases. These are symptoms and indicate that the indi-
the maximum is nine. The most common was indebtedness (86 vidual needs some psycho-social help. Dispute with neighbours/
per cent). From all those indebted, 44 per cent were harassed others in the villages was identified in 24 per cent of the cases.
for repayment of loans and in 33 per cent of cases the creditor This could be related with property disputes or an altercation
insisted on immediate repayment (Table 4). Next in importance leading to a social humiliation. Or, it could be a part of his
is the fall in economic position (74 per cent). Indebtedness per changed behaviour indicating that he needs some help.
se will not lead to a fall in economic position, but if it reaches The personal health problem of the deceased was identified
a stage that will lead to a sale of assets then it can be associated in 21 per cent of the cases. From these, 26 per cent (six cases)
with a fall in economic position. Similarly, a fall in economic were those who were perceived by others’ with some mental
position can also lead to greater reliance on credit and thereby health problem. Illness gets aggravated due to a poor economic
increasing the debt burden. condition because it makes care seeking difficult. Similarly, ill
In 55 per cent of cases, it was observed that the individual health can lead to a loan to meet medical expenses and also
concerned had not discussed his/her problem with other family reduce the ability to work aggravating the economic condition.
members. He/she was shouldering the entire burden that was If the sick person is some other member (3 per cent of the cases)
troubling him and was not sharing his/her difficulties with others. then the breadwinner has the added frustration and helplessness
An avenue for letting out one’s pent up feelings and frustration in not being able to provide appropriate care for an ailing parent/
was closed. spouse/child. Death of another member in the family before the
Crop failure was mentioned in 40 per cent of the cases and incident was identified in 10 per cent of the cases. The near
most of these also mentioned a loss in second or third sowing one’s death could have been because of not receiving appropriate
due to delay in rainfall. There were a few cases which mention healthcare. Inability to provide care is largely because of the
fire or theft. Crop loss can also happen due to excessive untimely poor economic condition rooted in the larger agrarian crisis.
rain, say, during the harvest. Crop failure can lead to economic Suicide history in the family could be identified in 6 per cent of
downfall and make it difficult to repay existing loans. This will the cases. This could be indicative of a genetic factor. However, as
also increase the need for additional credit. Crop failure leading mentioned earlier such individual factors are predisposing in nature
to a fall in economic position is quite straight forward, but the and they can be intensified with some additional risk factors.
causal links can also be the other way round. A household faced Being indebted has been one of the most important risk factors,
with a downfall in economic position or with greater debt burden but then this may not reveal much about the extent of debt burden.
could not take additional loans for investing in agriculture (say, Comparing suicide case with non-suicide control households
during a pest attack) and this can lead to a reduction in yield shows that the average outstanding debt is higher in the former
or total crop failure. by 3.5 times and after normalising for family size or land size
Change in social status was identified in 36 per cent of the it is higher by three times and all these differences are statistically
cases. This can be associated with a fall in economic position. significant (Table 5).
Harassment by creditors or their agents due to non-payment of
loans can also lead to social disgrace. Crop failure due to Table 5: Average Outstanding Debt per Household
unsuccessful experimentation by a farmer who was recognised
Household Suicide Cases Non-Suicide Controls
as successful entrepreneur may find a change in his social status Debt Amount N Amount N
– people who earlier came for advice are now providing solace.
A socially important role of a brother/father is to get one’s All * 38444 101 10910 95
Per person* 7224 101 2405 95
sister/daughter married. Communities have norms in terms of age Per acre* 7079 94 2365 90
and expenditure.10 A farmer is largely dependent on a good return
Notes: N=number of households. * Difference between suicide cases and
from his produce to fulfil this obligation. Thus, crop failure, non-suicide controls is statistically significant at 95 per cent CI.
greater credit burden or a fall in his economic position can come Source: Field Survey.
in his way of fulfilling this obligation. Inability to conduct a
Table 6: Average Outstanding Debt per Transaction
sister’s/daughter’s marriage can be socially humiliating. It can across Source
also increase intra-household conflicts. To complete this social
Source Suicide Cases Non-Suicide Controls
obligation a farmer may also take loans thinking that he can repay
Amount N Amount N
the amount after the harvest. The recent marriage of a sister/
daughter or inability to get one’s sister/daughter married has been Cooperative bank 30466 50 13756 26
Rural bank 11314 7 40800 4
identified as a risk factor in 34 per cent of the cases. Commercial bank 95000 4 11500 1
We have also taken note of recent suicides in a nearby village Moneylender 22080 60 11973 26
and identified them as an additional risk factor in 32 per cent Friends/relatives 16268 28 2000 2
Self-help group 4500 2 14000 1
of the cases. This was done because an individual who is facing Trader 5000 2 20000 1
some similar socio-economic problem can relate to the earlier Landlord/employer 4000 2 10000 1
incident and contemplate suicide. There could be an imitation Others 12571 7 16089 9
Not available 5000 1 - -
effect.11 Addiction (particularly, alcohol) was identified in 28 Total 23821 163 14598 71
per cent of the cases. It is said that under intoxication an individual
Note: N indicates the number of transactions with outstanding debt. The
may indulge in an act of self-harm without being aware of the transactions are from 93 suicide cases and 55 non-suicide controls.
consequences. Alternatively, getting intoxicated could itself be Source: Field Survey.
1542 Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006

6. The 95 suicide cases had outstanding debt from 163 loan exclude the extreme case of Rs 2.5 lakh outstanding debt from
transactions and 55 non-suicide controls had outstanding debt a commercial bank); it is 10 per cent of the total outstanding
from 71 loan transactions. Thus, the average number of loans debt among non-suicide control households.
with outstanding debt in suicide cases (1.8) was higher when The total outstanding debt from suicide cases is 3.7 times more
compared with non-suicide controls (1.3). Analysis of the source than the total outstanding debt from non-suicide controls. Com-
of loan indicates a greater reliance on cooperatives in the formal pared to non-suicide controls, the suicide cases have a greater
sector and moneylenders in the informal sector (Table 6). proportion of outstanding debt that is more than one year old
The reliance on moneylenders and friends/relatives is higher (74 per cent and 65 per cent respectively) and for 2004, the most
for suicide cases (54 per cent of 163 transactions) than non-suicide recent year, a greater proportion of outstanding debt is from
controls (39 per cent of 71 transactions). A very high amount informal sources (72 per cent for suicide cases and 38 per cent
is indicated for suicide case households under commercial bank for non-suicide controls).
because a large farmer (owning 28 acres) having an outstanding Comparison of suicide cases with non-suicide controls also
loan of Rs 2.5 lakh which was incurred for marriage in the family indicate that on average the former have a lower proportion than
(in fact, the individual had taken a loan of Rs 5 lakh and had that which owns bullocks (a productive and liquid asset), rela-
already returned Rs 2.5 lakh). After excluding this extreme case, tively greater family size (particularly, female members) and
the distribution of total outstanding debt indicates that 42 per lower value of produce (Table 8). The relevance of bullocks to
cent is from cooperative banks, 36 per cent is from moneylenders the agrarian economy as a productive asset in Indian agriculture
and 13 per cent is from friends/relatives. In non-suicide control is also well known [see Vaidyanathan 1988 among others].
households, after excluding a loan transaction with outstanding Bullocks are the major means of ploughing, an act that depends
debt of Rs 98,200 from a rural bank, the distribution of total on rain and has to be done within a short span before sowing.
outstanding debt indicates that 38 per cent is from cooperative Hiring of bullocks or tractors will increase costs and the latter
banks, 33 per cent is from moneylenders and 15 per cent is from may not be as effective in these dry land rain-dependent con-
other unspecified informal sources. ditions. Bullocks are also used as a liquid asset that is sold under
The purpose of loan is given in Table 7. After excluding the distress conditions. Thus, the absence of bullocks may be a
transactions where the purpose is not available, 67 per cent in the reflection of the hardship that the household has been facing.
suicide cases and 89 per cent in the non-suicide controls are for It was observed that suicide case households had on average a
agricultural purposes only. This proportion further increases if we lower ownership of bullocks as well as other livestock, agricul-
take into consideration transactions from formal sources only. tural implements, consumer durables and access to basic ameni-
Next to agriculture is marriage, which is mostly from informal ties. These get further compounded with a crop failure or poor
sources. For each specific purpose the number of transactions yield leading to a lower value of produce. If this also happens
with outstanding debt and the average outstanding debt per to be a family with a daughter or sister of marriageable age then
transaction is higher among suicide case households when com- the social responsibility would further add to the burden.
pared with non-suicide control households. The average amount A statistical exercise is done to compare case-control house-
of outstanding debt per transaction for agricultural purposes is holds. Households suicide status is a binary dependent variable,
greater than Rs 10,000. For marriage, after excluding an extreme Y; 1=case and 0=control. The independent variables, Xi’s, are
observation with outstanding debt of Rs 2,50,000 from a com- outstanding debt in rupees, a yes/no binary variable on ownership
mercial bank by a suicide case household, the gap is Rs 2,324 of bullocks, family size, value of produce in rupees and value
only. There was one suicide case household where a loan for of produce per acre of landowned in rupees. Using these, we
health expenditure was to the tune of Rs 1.5 lakh. From total estimate a step-wise logistic regression,12
outstanding debt (including those where the purpose is not ln[p/(1-p)]=α+βiXi+u; i=1,…5.
available), agriculture being the sole purpose accounts for 65 where ln is natural logarithm, p is probability of obtaining a
per cent of the outstanding debt in suicide case households and suicide case household, ln[p/(1-p)] is the log odds ratio of a
79 per cent in non-suicide control households. Marriage being suicide case household, α is a coefficient on the constant term,
the sole purpose accounts for 18 per cent of the total outstanding βi’s are the coefficients of the five independent variables, Xi’s,
debt in suicide case households (reduces to 13 per cent if we and u is error term.
Table 7: Average Outstanding Debt per Transaction by Source across Purpose/Year of Loan
Purpose/Year Suicide Cases Non-Suicide Controls
Formal N Informal N Total N Formal N Informal N Total N
Purpose
Agriculture 28861 49 20660 53 24600 102 18475 26 11353 30 14660 56
Marriage 250000 1 27324 17 39694 18 - - 25000 4 25000 4
Others 42261 5 12492 24 17624 29 6000 2 21000 5 16714 7
Not available 17833 6 5125 8 10571 14 13333 3 11700 5 12313 8
Year
2005, January-March - - 7760 5 7760 5 - - 50000 1 50000 1
2004 18427 15 16273 44 16821 59 17562 13 9629 14 13448 27
2003 29333 18 15722 27 21167 45 10080 7 14955 11 13059 18
2002 18810 11 22588 17 21104 28 17083 6 9614 7 13062 13
2001 38560 5 21000 4 30756 9 22500 2 15000 5 17143 7
2000 and earlier 64050 8 200000 1 79156 9 28667 3 - - 28667 3
Not available 66500 4 13250 4 39875 8 - - 6250 2 6250 2
Total 32500 61 18630 102 23821 163 17173 31 12603 40 14598 71
Note: N indicates the number of transactions with outstanding debt.
Source: Field Survey.
Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006 1543

7. While discussing results, instead of coefficients, odds ratio, Gross value addition is relatively higher for fruits and vege-
eβi, are given because the interpretation is more intuitive – for tables and sugar cane, but these crops are not grown in the
a unit increase in the independent variable there would be a selected districts. Traditionally, cotton has been the cash crop
corresponding change in the odds ratio (probability of a suicide for farmers of the districts. Over the years, profitability from
case/probability of a non-suicide control). cotton has declined. Some of the reasons are: high subsidies by
The result for complete case-control analysis of the 68 pairs the US leading to price distortions, low import tariffs in
of observation is as follows. It gives outstanding debt and absence India, and failure of the MCPS in Maharashtra. The withdrawal of
of bullocks as statistically significant variables that differentiate the state is evident from declining public investment in agricul-
suicide case from non-suicide control households (Table 9). It ture, poor government agricultural extension service, and a dimin-
suggests that if outstanding debt increases by Rs 1,000 then the ishing role of formal institutions in rural financial market among
odds that the household is one with a suicide victim increases others. The farmer now depends on the input dealer for advice
by 6 per cent and if the household owns bullocks then the odds leading to supplier-induced demand and on informal sources of
that it is a household with a suicide victim decreases by 65 per credit with a greater interest burden. To add to this, 2004 was
cent. When we estimate the results for the three selected districts a rain deficient year that affected yield in at least some pockets
independently, then under different scenarios family size, value of the selected districts, but the overall macro supply scenario
of produce, and land size turn out to be statistically significant being good, market prices were low. The farmer was exposed
in explaining the differences. to yield and price shocks simultaneously. In short, the systemic
risk factors indicate a larger socio-economic and agrarian crisis.
IV In the micro-level analysis, the inter-related and coexisting
Concluding Remarks socio-economic risk factors identified are indebtedness, deterio-
ration of economic status, conflict with other members in the
Maharashtra’s age-adjusted suicide mortality rate for males has family, crop failure, a decline in social position, burden of
stabilised in the range of 20-21 from 2001 onwards and that for daughter’s/sister’s marriage, suicide in a nearby village, addictions,
females has been declining after 1999. The SMR for farmers have change in behaviour of the deceased, dispute with neighbours/others,
increased by nearly four times from 15 in 1995 to 57 in 2004. health problems, a recent death in the family, history of suicide
It is the highest in Amravati division where SMR for male farmers in the family and other family members being ill. Comparing
was 116 during 2001-04, which was more than eight times the suicide cases and non-suicide controls, one observes that on an
age-adjusted SMR for males in India in 2001. average the former have a higher outstanding debt, a relatively
lower owner ownership of assets (particularly, bullocks which
Table 8: Comparing Control Cases by Average is a productive and liquid asset) and access to basic amenities,
Household Characteristics
a larger family size (particularly, female members), and a lower
Average Characteristic Suicide Cases Non-Suicide Controls value of produce. These indicate that the idiosyncratic factors
Value N Value N do not occur in isolation – they are exacerbated because of the
Own bullocks ( per cent)* 42.9 105 63.5 104 larger socio-economic and agrarian crisis.
Value of produce (Rs 000) 22.9 93 41.4 90 The policy implication from the above discussion calls for an
Value of produce per Acre (Rs 000) 3.4 93 6.5 90
Family size 5.53 111 5.08 106 emphasis on the larger agrarian crisis. Availability of affordable
Notes: N=number of households. * Difference between suicide cases and
credit requires revitalisation of the rural credit market. Risk
non-suicide controls is statistically significant at 95 per cent confidence management should address yield, price, credit, income or weather
interval. related uncertainties among others. Improving water availability
Source: Field Survey.
will facilitate diversification of the cropping pattern, but this
Table 9: Results (Odds Ratio) of Step-wise Logistic should go hand in hand with policies that increase non-farm
Regression Analysis employment. Improving agricultural extension that addresses
Complete Wardha Washim Yavatmal deskilling because of technological changes and also facilitates
Case-Control Analysis appropriate technical know-how for alternative forms of culti-
N 136 24 32 80 vation such as organic farming will be of help. There is a strong
Debt 1.000061 1.000237 1.00009 1.000055 case for regulating private credit and input markets. Public health
(0.0000138) (0.0000974) (0.0000383) (0.0000176)
[0.000] [0.015] [0.019] [0.002] interventions would require improving access to treatment of
Own bullocks 0.3462934 0.3084751 poisoning cases and psychosocial care. This should be comple-
(0.1403603) (0.1685215)
[0.009] [0.031] mented with policies that reduce the access to organo-phosphorous
Family size 2.124579 poisons. Besides, support from public institutions, there is need
(0.8003213)
[0.045] for a greater involvement from civil society. -29
Value produce 0.9997406
(0.0001221) Email: srijit@igidr.ac.in
[0.034]
Value per acre 0.9997575
(0.0001234) Notes
[0.049]
Log likelihood -74.6497 -5.4993989 -16.388205 -42.176024 [This paper draws largely on the report, Suicide of Farmers in Maharashtra
LR Chi2 39.24 22.27 11.59 26.55 funded by the government of Maharashtra. Many people helped in the study
Prob >Chi2 0.0000 0.0000 0.0031 0.0000 and the detailed acknowledgements are in the report, but the cooperation of
PseudoR2 0.2081 0.6694 0.2612 0.2394 the individuals interviewed (particularly, the members of the suicide case
Notes: Round brackets give standard error, square brackets give prob > |z|. households) needs special mention. The author thanks R Radhakrishna for
The variables are indicated in the order in which they were selected in giving him this responsibility and, more importantly, for his comments and
the step-wise logistic regression. In Wardha, estimation was possible suggestions at various stages of the work and D Narasimha Reddy for
after excluding the variable value of produce per acre. comments on an earlier version of this paper.]
1544 Economic and Political Weekly April 22, 2006

8. 1 Some of the recent studies include Assadi (1998), Bhalla et al (1998), Government of Andhra Pradesh (2004): Report of the Commission on Farmers’
Chowdry et al (undated), Dandekar et al (2005), Deshpande (2002), Welfare, Hyderabad.
Government of Andhra Pradesh (2004), Government of Maharashtra Government of India (2004): Draft Final Report of the Task Force on Revival
(1998), Iyer and Manick (2000), Mishra (2006a, 2006b), Mohan Rao of Cooperative Credit Institutions, (chairperson of the committee: A
(2004), Mohanty (2001, 2005), Mohanty and Shroff (2004), Parthasarathy Vaidyanathan).
and Shameem (1998), Purendra Prasad (2003), Revathi (1998), Shambhu Government of Maharashtra (1984): Report of the Fact Finding Committee
Prasad (1999), Shiva et al (2000), Stone (2002) and Vasavi (1999) among on Regional Imbalance in Maharashtra, Planning Department,
others. Bombay, April.
2 There is under-reporting because of legal hassles and shame identified – (1998): Suicides of Farmers in Maharashtra: A Socio-Economic Survey,
with the act. Commissioner Agriculture, Maharashtra State, Pune, Special Study, August.
3 Medically, suicide is not defined for the age group of 0-4 years. Hence, Gunnell, D, and M Eddleston (2003): ‘Suicide by Intentional Ingestion of
5+ population is used to compute the age-adjusted SMR. Pesticide: A Continuing Tragedy in Developing Countries’, International
4 For a recent discussion on Maharashtra’s growth and poverty see Mishra Journal of Epidemiology, 32 (6): 902-09.
and Panda (2006). For Maharashtra’s agricultural development till early Iyer, K G and M S Manick (2000): Impoverishment and Suicides in Rural
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to drastic fall in the prices received by the farmer when costs are likely ‘Suicide and Exposure to Organophosphate Insecticides: Cause or Effect?’
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