1/n....There’s so much cacophony about #FarmersProtests that is only about #Punjab that no one bothers about what #farmers in other states are doing. This is one such village in #TamilNadu where harvest had just been completed and what I’ve gathered is from talking to farmers!

2/n - 1. Around 340 acres of paddy totally dependant on monsoon. No proper rainfall for the past 5 years and only due to cyclone Nivar the lake got filled and they could sow. 2. Only 4/5 farmers among 100 or so own tractors and even they depend on rental income for tilling others

3/n 3. Land holdings one - five acres 4. Whole village dependant on a common set of labor who come at their convenience for paddy transplantation 5. I saw five harvesters which serve the surrounding area. Not one owns in the village. 6. Paddy is dumped on roads or own places.

7. They sell to brokers. No fixed one, around 3 or 4 for the village, and each negotiates for the rate. The brokers come with their labor and weighing machines to where the paddy is dumped. 8. Broker had two choices, sell to committee or rice mills 9. Rate 1100. - 1130

for the #farmer. The broker or #arhatiya came in an old motorcycle carrying the weighing machine. . If he sells to mill he gets ~10/bag. No cleaning , just loading, sending and gets cash within a week. 11. For committee he has to store in some place, sometimes in an open place

which is subject to the vagraries of nature and is responsible to the farmer for payment irrespective of the damage. For that he gets ~75/bag. Please don’t ask what the price so you can understand where the difference gets distributed! doesn’t matter if paddy is damaged.

n/n...now everyone is aware of the system in the #FarmersProtest and You can compare for yourselves. Now tell me why the whining?!?!!????!!!