MT Desk: Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, As many as 899 farmers committed suicide in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra during January to October this year, with 537 of them taking their lives in six months when floods caused massive damage to crops, official data shows. Minister of State for Agriculture Ashish Jaiswal said the government is seriously addressing the issue and has increased the spending on dedicated schemes and incentives to ₹1 lakh crore.

The data provided by the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar divisional commissioner`s office shows Marathwada recorded 899 farmer suicides in ten months from January to October this year, including 537 in six months when rains and floods wreaked havoc.
Beed and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar districts recorded the highest number of suicides by agriculturists. District-wise, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar recorded 112 suicides, Jalna- 32, Parbhani- 45, Hingoli-33, Nanded- 90, Beed- 108, Latur- 47 and Dharashiv- 70 in these six months.
Farmer leader and former MP Raju Shetti expressed deep anguish over the suicides, saying unseasonal rain followed by floods and extended monsoon severely damaged fruit orchards and crops. "This sequence of events has undoubtedly demoralised the farmers in Marathwada", he said. Shetti alleged agriculturists received meagre compensation for the damage to crops. "A farmer with a banana orchard had finalised a deal with a businessman for nearly 100 tons of crop at a rate of ₹25,000 per ton. After the floods in the Sina river took away his entire crop, he got a compensation of just ₹25,000. There are numerous such cases", he claimed
Vinayak Hegana, founder of Shivar Helpline, dedicated to resolving farmers` issues through counselling, urged the government to adopt a strategic, long-term approach to disaster management. "The government must recognise this pattern of climate change and form a dedicated task force, similar to the one implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. This force should be empowered to address and resolve farmers` issues on an immediate, localised basis," he suggested.
He said the existing parameters of disaster management need to be redefined in Marathwada, and new frameworks must be established