Agriculture in Calangute on decline

Agriculture in Calangute on decline
Preetu Nair | TNN

Calangute: Sixty-year-old Rama Matkar returns from the field very unhappy. Despite all the hard work and money spent, he believes that the paddy yield this year won’t be enough to sustain the family for the year. He feels that his worst fears may just come true and they would be forced to purchase rice from the market, something that the family has never done before.
“Despite all our efforts, the yield is reducing, even as the expense on labour and fertilizers is increasing. Now it is cheaper to purchase rice from the market than cultivate your own paddy crop,” said Rama from Gaurawaddo in Calangute.
Agriculture in Goa is on the decline forcing farmers to take up alternate businesses or sell the agricultural land to the highest bidder. Once dependent on farming for survival, the villagers in this coastal village now lament about how money is wasted on paying migrant labourers and how there is no subsidy for farmers in the state.
Rama’s son is a taxi driver, who helps him in the fields during the off-season. But now, just like several other youth in the village, he also claims that the field yields little despite days and nights of back-breaking effort.
Thirty-two-year old Samir Chopdekar says, “How many farmers have a posh car parked outside their bungalow. Many don’t even get to eat a decent meal. More than what they earn, they spend and there is no saving.’’ His parents were farmers and as a child, he also used to go for farming, but now he believes that farming is a waste of time and energy. People complain that inflation has also affected them as the cost of everything, including fertilisers has increased. Further, bad spell of monsoon has also not helped them much.
“I help my mother in cultivating paddy in the monsoon as we don’t get many tourists during the rains. I love working in the field,” said Rajesh Matkar (29). Rajesh is amongst the few youths in the village who are still eager to work in the fields. But he doesn’t know how long he will continue to plough the land and believes that it won’t be long before they also join the crowd.
As per 2001 population census, 16.6% people in the state were engaged in agriculture and allied activities, showing a sharp decline from 63.7% in 1960. This despite the Directorate of Agriculture’s promises to provide custom services to the farmers by providing them with tractors, power tillers and brush/weed cutters on subsidy, which help the farmers to carry out work in their own field, besides providing incentives to the farmers to sustain falling price of their produce.
According to Domingo Fernandes (36), who occasionally works in the field, “During the month of May, there is a huge demand for fertilizers and we have to sometimes purchase it in black by paying extra amount’’.
“Today’s youth argue that there is more money in driving a taxi or working in the shack. They argue that in a week they earn the money to purchase rice that can last them for the year, that even three months of hard work in the fields can’t guarantee,” added Rama.
There is also a social problem, the youth of the village explain. “Now a few parents don’t want to marry off their daughters to a farmer, as they are considered poor and the girl would also have to work in the field,’’ added Vijay Paresekar.

August 11, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition