Madhya Pradesh farmer suicide toll reaches 42 since June 6
The number of farmer suicides in Madhya Pradesh since June 6, the day six farmers were killed in the Mandsaur police firing, has reached 42. As per reports, as many as eight farmers have killed themselves in the past 24 hours across the state. Sehore district has topped the list of places with the maximum number of farmer suicides.
Farmers continue to kill themselves in Madhya Pradesh. There seems to be no end to disturbing trend among the farmers. Since the Mandsaur police firing which killed six farmers, 42 more have committed suicide in Madhya Pradesh.Eight farmers have committed suicide in the state in the past 24 hours taking the total to 42 since June 6.  Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's home district Sehore  tops the suicide list where nine farmers have taken the extreme step. FARMERS SUICIDE EVERYWHEREIn Hoshangabad, four farmers have committed suicide while three each from Badwani and Dhar districts took the extreme step.Two farmers each from Ratlam, Vidisha, Balaghat, Chhattarpur, and Panna also killed themselves, supposedly, because of debt burden and farm related issues while one farmer each from Sagar, Raisen, Harda, Shivpuri, Chindwara, Neemuch, Indore, Tikamgarh, Khandwa Dewas, Morena, Mandsaur and Narsinghpur committed suicide. Family members of the farmers, who ended their lives, have alleged either a debt trap or farm related distress as the cause but the state government does not agree with them. WHAT STATE GOVERNMENT SAYSMadhya Pradesh agriculture minister Gauri Shanker Bisen has said on more than one occasion that it has become a fashion to attribute farming distress and debt trap to every suicide committed in the state. State BJP president Nand Kumar Chouhan has also echoed the sentiments expressed by the Madhya Pradesh minister.  The BJP and the state government have blamed the Congress party for playing politics over farmers' death in Madhya Pradesh. The Congress, in turn, has held the BJP government responsible for deaths of the farmers.ALSO READ | Revealed: What is killing India's farmers? India Today exclusive No farmer in Madhya Pradesh committed suicide due to agrarian distress: CID report