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VJAS’ open letter to President of India on plight of Vidarbha farmers’ widows

By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net 
Bhopal, June 8: The Nagpur-based Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti, (VJAS), has urged the President of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam to spare, during his proposed visit to Yavatmal & Wardha Districts of Vidarbha Region of Maharashtra State for some cultural & educational programmes as a Guest of Honor, a few minutes for the grief ridden unfortunate families and widows of farmers who killed themselves due to continued plight and miserable life being experienced by the entire rural India, economy of which is in extreme broken condition and due to that the farmers at large are constraint to commit suicides.  
   
VJAS president Kishor Tiwari in an open letter to the President pointed out that Vidarbha agrarian crisis is a live example of how we are proceeding in a global economy in which issues of rural India & farmers have been thrown to the back benches. 
   
"Yavatmal & Wardha are the worst heat districts and therefore, being termed as Epicenter of farmers suicides, if you refer to the reports submitted by Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, the former Chairman of National Commission on Farmers and your friend", the letter said. 
   
The letter stated that VJAS is raising the issue of plight of poor farmers, who are in extreme distress and suffering the heat of failure of Govt. policies, which has resulted in complete collapse of Indian rural economy and perhaps Vidarbha region has been branded as Epicenter of farmers suicides and is witnessing a live lesson to learn.   
   
The letter recalled that since last two years, everyday in the morning, VJAS has been mailing him the updated list containing names, addresses and other relevant details of the unfortunate farmers whose continued series of suicides due to extreme distress conditions prevailing in the Vidarbha region and which is heating the National & International news sense.  "We also submitted a detailed report containing the facts how Prime Minister Relief Package has failed to address the basic issues', the letter noted.
   
However, VJAS is extremely sorry that it neither received any reply from the President's office on their various mails / fax / letters sent to him almost daily nor came to know any action is initiated by you on such a serious issue of plight of farmers in Vidarbha Region.   
   
"We regret that your office has not addressed the issue in a manner it would have been, considering the gravity, seriousness & intensity of the subject. Perhaps this might be due to your busy schedule", the letter mourned. 
   
The letter requested: "We will be highly obliged, if you could spare few minutes to meet unfortunate widows of farmers either at Yavatmal or Wardha and incorporate this meeting in your busy schedule programme and arrange to inform us accordingly".   
   
However, The letter stated: "we strongly feel that it is not all well in Vidarbha and therefore, it's not right time for any cultural or dancing session inauguration. Social issues are so grave that, such white collar cultural and dancing session inauguration programmes need to be discarded and we all should address thrust issues of ruining rural economy of India and the agrarian crisis. We feel that your Yavatmal and Wardha visit must address these core issues and due importance may please be given on such a serious subject". ([email protected])

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