Spotlight

New Delhi, 26 May 2007

FARMERS’ PLIGHT IN BUNDELKHAND VILLAGES

NEW DELHI, May 27 (INFA): Several villages in the Bundelkhand region of U.P. are presently facing acute shortage of water for irrigation. The farmers of the region apprehend the emergence of Vidarbha like situation, where a large number of farmers have committed suicides.

Scanty rainfall and water scarcity have rendered Lalitpur, Mahoba and villages around Banda and Bundelkhand virtually barren. Add to this the debt situation, and the cauldron boils.

Four farmers have already committed suicides in villages adjoining Pandui. The financial state of several others is critically bad.

Debt has forced several farmers to switch to daily-wage jobs. Tanti, a 55-year old tiller in Mahoba, has 30 units of land and a loan of Rs.40,000. “I have 12 months to feed and cannot afford to sell my land,” he said.

Impoverished farmers borrowed from banks through kisan credit cards. But with no help forthcoming, many of them committed suicide,” Harisharan Singh, a junior high school teacher in Semra village of Banda said.

The administration is yet to respond to the crisis.  Sanyukta Samaddar, district magistrate, Banda, said, “farmers suffer because of poor crop yield.”

Migration rate is high. Hundreds of farmers have moved to cities in search of work. They have taken loans and cannot repay them. But the administration cannot do much. It has written off their land revenue dues for 2006-07.

Commenting on the high suicide among farmers, Ms Samadhar said, “The suicides are not starvation related. There are other reasons. We are investigation”. ---INFA

CANCER PREDICTION AT CHILDBIRTH

HYDERABAD, May 27 (INFA): Andhra University scientists are working on a project which will enable prediction of cancer onset at childbirth itself.

The research taken up under the Human Genome Diversity Project and conducted in collaboration with the US scientists, involves isolating genetic factors that trigger cancer in humans.

Identifying the markers would enable a person to take preventive steps early.

Meanwhile, new smear positive (NSP) case detection rate in Andhra Pradesh for detection of TB has increased to 74.4 per cent, while the NSP cure has gone up to 84.9 per cent during 2006.

These are some of the highlights of the status of TB cases in the State, released by the Health Department on the recent World TB Day observed in the capital.---INFA