An Avoidable Tragedy: Sorrow Of Yavatmal

Sudhir Deshmukh (name changed), a farmer in Yavatmal, last saw his fluffy cotton crops before he sprayed the poisonous insecticides.

Little did he know that the use of these pesticides would take away his life, leaving behind a family of four dependents.

Apparently, all of us have long been aware of the long-term harmfulness of the use of pesticides. But, perhaps this is not the case with the poor and illiterate farmers.

This and many other failings of our society were seen in the heart-rending Yavatmal tragedy, which killed 13 farmers and left 248 of them suffering.

Many among them are still struggling between life and death.

The vital question in such a scenario is to find alternatives to avoid such a situation.

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The sound and helpful alternative in such a scenario is a judicial mix of organic and chemical crop enhancers.

At the same time, it is even more vital to ensure that the chemicals that are potentially harmful are prevented from entering the market.

Printing the instructions for use in regional languages and providing proper information and training to the farmers regarding the sensible use of growth enhancers is vital.

If we don’t learn our lessons now, it will be too late to rise up.