What are the economic and social conditions of farmers in India?
Answer:
India has about 1,129,866,154 people in it (July, 2007 estimate.) This makes India's foods need the second highest on the planet (behind only China.) Not surprisingly, nearly 3/4ths of the workers in India are engaged in feeding the nation (through Agriculture mostly, as most Hindu's don't eat meat.)
The huge and growing population is the fundamental social, economic, and environmental problem. As modern farming methods are employed more (fertilization, pest control, machinery, etc.) their ability to feed their people will further cause the nation to grow.
But the road ahead is difficult. They typical farmer is poor. They are unable to provide more than the vary basic needs for their families. However, as the portion of the economy that is growing rapidly (software services and programming) brings wealth to some, the prices of basic commodities (like food) are increasing, and that is "trickling down" to the farmers. India, as a nation, spent $15 billion US dollars on building infrastrucure. As a comparison, the single State of Missouri spent more. India still lags far behind the west.
India consumes about 2.5 million barrels of oil a day. This isn't enough to use machinery in all their agricultural endeavors--indeed, they plant, weed, and harvest much of their needs by hand. A farmer in the US works very hard (80+ hours per week) during certain key periods (planting, harvesting, etc.) and significantly less hard during most of the year. The average American farm family earns $60,000.00 a year. The average Indian farm family works 80 hours per week, through 40 or more weeks in the year, and earns about $3,000.00 a year. His wife and children work with him in the field.
Few have telephones, computers, or other modern equipment. Most don't even own a tractor.
There is another disturbing issue. Wages are so poor for most farmers, that some resort to the selling of their children to others--often in involuntary servitude (slavery) to brick kilns, rice mills, and embroidery factories, while some children endure involuntary servitude as domestic servants; some are sold as sex slaves--usually within India herself.
To some, (hopefully a very small minority) raising children is no different than raising a crop. Children can be sold for a profit, as can wheat.
The second link leads to a series of questions and answers (with pictures) about farming in India. It should help.
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