Farmers' suicide: Jayati Ghosh to head probe panel

Professor Jayati Ghosh will head the 13-member Andhra Pradesh Commission on Farmers' Welfare constituted by the state government to 'probe further into the issue of agricultural development and productivity vis-à-vis farmers' suicides.'

Apart from Jayati Ghosh, professor and chairperson, Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, Jawaharlal Nehru University, the panel includes Dr Mruthyunjaya, Dr K Nagaraj, Prof K R Chowdary, Prof D Narsimha Reddy, G Nancharaiah, Prof S Mahendra Dev, Y V Malla Reddy, Prof Madhura Swaminathan, K Raju, P Krishnaiah, Prof Shaik Galab and S Bhattacharya (convenor).

The commission has been given two months to submit a comprehensive report. It will study the factors that drove the farmers to suicide, propose an action plan to address the problems, make recommendations on development of agriculture and improvement of productivity and suggest modalities for constitution of an Agriculture Technology Mission.

The Agriculture Technology Mission is contemplated as a permanent body to formulate strategies for the development of the agriculture sector. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy himself will head the mission.

The first full-fledged meeting of the commission will be held on September 20. The chief minister will inaugurate the commission. All the panel members, including eight special invitees, as well as ministers, departmental heads of agriculture and allied sectors, representatives from ICRISAT and Directorate of Rice Research will attend the meeting.

The commission has been constituted as per the recommendation of the cabinet sub-committee on farm sector appointed by the Congress government. The commission will tour all parts of the state to look into the problems of farmers, bankers and other sections.

The commission members will later visit the worst affected Anantapur district to study the plight of farmers and status of farming operations.