A joint fact-finding team from the Human Rights Forum (HRF) and Rythu Swarajya Vedika (RSV), which visited several villages in the Palnadu district, has raised alarm over the rising number of farmer suicides in the region.
The team toured villages in three mandals of the Gurazala division on July 29 and 30, meeting the families of nine farmers who had died by suicide in recent years.
They collected detailed information about the circumstances surrounding each death and the subsequent response from the government.
According to the report, Government Order (GO) No. 43 — designed to provide relief and rehabilitation to families of farmers who die by suicide — has been grossly neglected.
“Of the nine families we visited, only one had received financial assistance under the GO,” the team noted.
In several cases, even when officials acknowledged that the deaths were genuine suicides caused by agrarian distress as defined in the GO, the families still received no compensation or support.
The report highlighted a sharp rise in tenant farming in Palnadu in recent years, with both the number of tenants and lease rates increasing significantly — often reaching ₹25,000 per acre. Farmers in the region typically cultivate crops like cotton, chilli, paddy, and red gram.
However, the combination of erratic weather — either excessive rainfall or drought — and recurring pest attacks has led to repeated crop failures. Crushed by mounting losses and unmanageable debt, many farmers have been pushed to the brink, the report said.
In Veldurthi mandal, for example, borewells yield water only at depths beyond 1,000 feet. Farmers invest lakhs of rupees in digging these wells, often ending up in deep debt — especially when the borewells fail. Severe pest attacks have also led to a sharp decline in chilli yields in recent years.
“On top of that, market prices have collapsed, leaving farmers without any viable income,” the team stated. “The existing crop insurance scheme is deeply flawed and regularly fails to compensate farmers for losses. Worse still, it completely excludes tenant farmers.”
The report also criticized the inaction of the mandated three-member divisional-level verification committee (comprising the RDO, DSP, and ADA).
None of the officials had personally visited the affected families, despite GO 43 requiring the committee — led by the RDO — to visit the village, collect information, and submit a report to the Collector within one week of a reported suicide.
The team demanded immediate compensation and rehabilitation for the bereaved families, emphasizing that they should not be forced to wait any longer for the support they are legally and morally owed.
