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What ails rural Rajasthan -Sudhir Kumar Suthar
-The Indian Express

In zones of prosperity, agriculture faces crisis, jobs are few, social aspirations don’t match economic realities

After Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, farmers from Rajasthan came out on the streets demanding loan waiver and implementation of the Swaminathan Committee report. Protesting against government policies and demanding their share in the country’s development, which they argue have been denied to them, the farmers have shown unity across caste and class lines. However, it is not merely the farm-related economic anxieties that explain this massive farmer’s mobilisation. These movements have to be contextualised in the evolution of the present model of development and the way it has reshaped societies.

Much like Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, where the farmers’ agitations were located in the economically better-performing districts, the epicentre of the farmers’ movements in Rajasthan were districts that have seen a qualitative change in the rural economy and society in the past three decades — Sikar and Sri Ganganagar. One can see shops selling branded items and luxury cars on the roads in Sri Ganganagar. There are similar shops in Sikar as well. Today, Sikar looks very different from what it was 10 years ago.

The district has seen the emergence of a strong private education sector in the last three decades which has given a boost to its economy. Sikar’s proximity to Jaipur has also resulted in the emergence of a new middle class which has urban aspirations. Government data shows that in 2009 there were around 94 colleges in Sikar which increased to 124 in 2013. Coaching centres have also mushroomed in the district.

Traditionally, Sikar has been amongst the few districts in Rajasthan (also Jhunjhunu and Churu) which have a large number of educated people. Despite economic hardships, dependence on rain-fed agriculture and a lack of alternative income resources in the rural areas, the district has a relatively high literacy rate of 70 per cent. Two-and-a-half decades ago, the educated youth was an active participant in the organised sector. However, since 1991, the state has gradually withdrawn from providing jobs in general and in the education, health and engineering sector in particular.

Sikar’s educated youth got accommodated in the private education industry in the region due to growth in engineering, medical and other private enterprises. However, with the state’s withdrawal from various employment generating avenues and the gradual decline in employment opportunities in the private sector — a regular feature of Rajasthan’s political economy in the past few years — the youth have no other option but to go back and work on their farms. They also look for employment opportunities in the informal education sector.

Sri Ganganagar and the nearby district, Hanumangarh, has also witnessed significant rural-agrarian change in the past three decades. The two districts are beneficiaries of the Green Revolution with irrigation water from the Ganga Singh Canal and Indira Gandhi Canal available to them. In the initial years, the region benefitted from using new agricultural technology. A new wealthy agrarian class emerged, which has invested heavily in an urbanised life style and also in the education of their male children. The cropping pattern in the region has also shifted towards cash crops like mustard and cotton (Sri Ganganagar contributes 18 per cent of Rajasthan’s cotton production). A gradual increase in the cost of farm inputs has led to a rise in the cost of agricultural production.

Increasing access to education and high income levels in the two districts has led to consumerism among the rural youth. This economic change was, however, not accompanied by changes in social and cultural values. The youth became urbanised but have retained their rural cultural essence. The older values of rural community prestige have been clubbed with the urban values of extravagant marriages, heavy spending on rituals or religious activities, wealth accumulation and, above all, an individualised life.

This gap between the social and economic spheres is clearly visible in Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh districts. Despite a high per capita income, Sri Ganganagar has a very poor sex ratio. A large part of the farmers’ income in these districts goes in dowry or in rituals related to birth and death or in organising satsangs and jagrans. The Dera Saccha Sauda enjoys a lot of support in the two districts. In the last few years, expenditure on education and health has increased in the districts. The areas are also victims of a health crisis created by the overuse of chemicals in the production of food items, including vegetables and fruits.

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