from Vinay Pais
for Daijiworld Media Network – Kundapur (NR)

Kundapur, June 30: At present agricultural activities are moving at a snail’s pace. What was once known as the rice bowl of the district is today gradually turning out barren. Though late onset of monsoons is in quite responsible for this in one way, one has to agree that scarcity of labourers too is a major reason behind agriculturists abandoning lands.

The major problem faced by almost every agriculturist these days is of lack of labourers, especially female workers.  This has in turn slowed down sowing in most places of the taluk.  When they find nobody, they have to rely on their family members.  However, involvement of family members in agricultural activities accounts only for 3 per cent while 97 per cent families have to depend on hired labourers, female workers and even hired tillers.

In places like Kundapur,Byndoor, Siddhapura, Bramawar the farmers depending solely on rain are forced to wait for 22 to 25 days for sowing though monsoons were on time. They constitute nearly 65% of farmers in the taluka. The farmers who are privileged to have Varahi water are now at their wits' end, for even offering higher rates of wages failed to attract farm workers. Only 10% of the sowing is over by now.

Moreover, these days, nuclear families are on the rise.  As a result small land owners find it difficult to utilize tillers which are economically and operationally viable only to bigger paddy fields. 

The female workers for sowing are employed on daily wages. However, the strength of the female workers is on the decline of late. This is owing to girls opting for school and college education or owing to migration in search of jobs to cities and towns.  At times their poor health makes them bed-ridden and unable to work. The farming community is of late facing a problem hitherto unknown.

They find it really hard to match and coordinate the availability of the labor force especially of female coolies on the one hand and the other hand hiring of tiller machines and of oxen or buffaloes. Any wrong step in opting for the coolies, tillers and the oxen or buffaloes would throw the agricultural operations out of gear, resulting in the farmers incurring double loss.