Tenant farmers left in the lurch

Demands

1. To be recognised as farmers
2. Implement the Telangana Land Licenced Cultivators Act, 2011 which gives them legal recognition through Loan Eligibility Cards (LECs)
3. Access to subsidised fertilisers, crop loans, crop-loss compensation and Rythu Bhima
4. Process of identifying tenant farmers should begin by September

T P Venu | Hyderabad

“The blood of the villages is the cement of the cities,” said Mahatma Gandhi. Yet, the farmers who feed millions continue to struggle to make a living. In Telangana, tenant farmers-who account for nearly 36 per cent of the farming community and represent around 22 lakh families-have been waging a relentless battle for recognition and support from the State Government.

Speaking to Metro India, Kannneganti Ravi of Rythu Swarajya Vedika says, “The Telangana Land Licenced Cultivators Act, 2011 should be enforced which will solve a lot of the problems that tenant farmers face. The Congress Government assured that tenant farmers would be recognised but there is no progress on this front.”

Once the Act is implemented, tenant farmers would be eligible for Loan Eligibility Cards (LECs) which would enable them to get bank loans, crop insurance, disaster relief without changing the land owner’s property rights.

Fed up with the State Government’s apathy, tenant farmers in Sangareddy are planning for a farmers rally and on Tuesday held detailed discussions with the Additional collector and submitted a representation and survey report. Tenant farmers from eight mandals participated in the meeting. The meeting was organised by the Sangareddy Tenant Farmers’ Recognition Struggle Committee. Tenant farmers from Hatnoora, Mogudampally, Zaheerabad, Jharasangam, Nyalkal, Kondapur, Sadashivpet and Sangareddy mandals attended the meeting and explained their difficulties. Family members of tenant farmers who died by suicide who spoke at the meeting included Savitramma from Machareddypally in Kohir mandal, Kurva Mamatha from Havelighanpur in Medak district, Gangaram Kummari Yadagiri from Kondapur mandal, and Suryaprabha from Sadashivpet.

The lack of recognition is affecting them to the extent that they are unable to sell the produce to government procurement agencies. For instance, if a tenant farmer is applying for paddy bonus, the crop booking is in the owner’s name. Also, when they wish to apply for crop loss compensation, the OTP goes to the owner and they have to be at the mercy of the owner. B Kondal of Rythu Swarajya Vedika says, “It is a struggle even to buy urea. The tenant farmers who constitute such a huge number and contribute to bumper crops have to struggle to survive.”

Following the tenant farmers’ meeting, tenant farmers and leaders of the struggle committee met Additional Collector Sangeetha and submitted a representation detailing their problems. They demanded that the process of identifying tenant farmers should begin by September, saying this was necessary to enable them to sell their produce during the current agricultural season.

Tenant farmers said they had previously received recognition cards through which they were able to access crop loans and government schemes.

They also said the system under which OTPs for various schemes and mobile applications are sent to landowners creates serious difficulties for tenant farmers. They demanded that tenant farmers be recognised at the beginning of the agricultural season itself and made eligible for all government schemes and benefits.

Study calls for tenant farmer recognition

A study by the Telangana Tenant Farmers’ Recognition Struggle Committee has highlighted the exclusion of tenant cultivators from government welfare schemes. The committee, chaired by economist Prof. D. Narasimha Reddy, surveyed 1,816 tenant farmers across 57 villages in 47 mandals and 22 districts. Only 6.8% of cotton, 8.5% of maize and soybean, and 17–20% of paddy tenant farmers accessed procurement benefits. Just 22% received urea subsidy, while only 11 of 1,536 farmers affected by crop losses received compensation. The committee urged the government to implement the 2011 Licensed Cultivators Act, issue eligibility cards and introduce one-time verification for access to all schemes.