Kisan Diwas | North or South, the Farmer’s Crisis Remains the Same

On Kisan Diwas, the reality confronting India’s farmers is painfully clear: decades of promises have delivered little change on the ground. From North to South, geography may differ, but distress looks strikingly similar.

North India
In Punjab and Haryana, farmers continue to struggle with delayed MSP payments, rising fertiliser costs and unresolved insurance claims. Sugarcane growers in western Uttar Pradesh are still waiting for long-pending mill dues, pushing families into chronic debt. In Rajasthan, repeated droughts and erratic rainfall have left farmers battling crop losses, while compensation and insurance payouts remain slow and inadequate. Apple growers in Himachal Pradesh face price crashes due to unchecked imports and lack of cold-storage support.

South India
In Tamil Nadu’s Cauvery delta, unpredictable water releases and extreme weather have caused repeated crop failures, with many insurance claims rejected. Karnataka’s farmers face falling market prices for pulses and maize, forcing distress sales below MSP. In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, soaring input costs—seeds, pesticides and power—have deepened indebtedness. Kerala’s rubber and coconut farmers continue to suffer from volatile prices and weak market protection.

The uncomfortable truth
For over three decades, governments of all colours have announced schemes, committees and slogans—yet farmers still face:
* No legal MSP guarantee
* Rising input costs and corporate control
* Weak and delayed crop insurance
* Growing climate vulnerability
* Mounting debt and income insecurity

Agriculture sustains over half of India’s population, but contributes less than 20% to GDP—a reflection of systemic neglect, not farmer failure.

SDPI’s Stand
Symbolism is not reform. Farmers need structural change, not seasonal assurances.
Legal MSP for all crops
Debt relief for small and marginal farmers
Public control over seeds, fertilisers and markets
Climate-resilient, farmer-centric policy

North or South, the message is the same:
Nothing substantial has changed for farmers in decades. It’s time that did.
SDPI stands with farmers—across regions, across generations.

Mohammad Shafi
National Vice President
SDPI