Land of Death & Despair

There is an alarming rise in the deaths of farmers in Maharashtra’s Marathwada region. In the first quarter of 2025-26, a shocking 269 cases of farmers’ suicide—a rise of 32 per cent compared to the corresponding period last year—have been reported from the eight districts of Marathwada alone. The Beed district recorded a sizeable rise in farmer suicides from 44 to 71. The district-wise break-up of farmer suicides (January-March 2025) in Marathwada is: Beed (71), Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (50), Nanded (37), Parbhani (33), Dharashiv (31), Latur (18), Hingoli (16), and Jalna (13).

According to the President of the Shetkari Sanghatana—an outfit of cultivators—the main factors which are compelling the small and marginal tillers to take their own lives are: (a) the per hectare yield of crops like cotton and soybean has gone down, and (b) input costs for these crops have gone up. He also blamed the state government for not fulfilling its election promises. During last year’s assembly election campaign, the government promised to waive farmers’ loans in the state, but they did not do it. This was like cheating the farmers, he grumbled. In addition to these, it is observed that unpredictable rainfall makes farming in Marathwada even harder. In the last two decades, annual rainfall over Marathwada has been stable, but the timing and intensity of rains have become erratic. Without proper support from the government, the farmers are unable to cope with the rapidly changing climatic conditions.

Changes in Cropping Pattern

Currently, the predominant crops cultivated in this region are soybean and Bt cotton, which dominate more than 80 per cent of Marathwada’s cultivable land. These crops, coupled with the lure of easy profits from sugarcane, have led the farmers and the citizens to the edge of the current hydrological disaster. Earlier, cereal and oilseeds were the main crops cultivated here. These crops were not only conducive to Marathwada’s arid climate but were drought-resistant and led to moisture harvesting. Ecologists flagged the water crisis in Maharashtra as a “policy-induced failure”.

Economists and water academics have specifically warned of the ‘desertification’ of the parched Marathwada region soon. According to Prof. HM Desarda, who is an economist and former member of the Maharashtra State Planning Board, mismanagement of water resources by successive governments, coupled with four decades of incessant ‘water mining’, has led to the groundwater table across the Marathwada region. The water level has declined precipitously to the point where rejuvenating it has become impossible, he said.

Drought conditions have forced the Marathwada sugar farmers to migrate for work as sugarcane cutters. Every year, during the sugarcane harvest season, thousands of workers migrate to work as sugarcane cutters in Kolhapur, one of the richest sugarcane-producing districts in Maharashtra. It receives abundant rainfall from June to September and also has a good irrigation infrastructure. Marathwada’s sugar farmers now work for low wages and operate in poor working conditions.

Sugar Industry: The Main Culprit

The history of drought in Marathwada can be traced to the installation of sugar mills, which were established in the early 1950s. Within the next few decades, the sugar co-operative industry shaped the careers of several senior politicians in Maharashtra, including past chief ministers like Yeshwantrao Chavan, Vasantdada Patil, and Shankarrao Chavan. Sugar factories needed a steady supply of sugarcane. Thus, Marathwada farmers were lured to cultivate highly water-intensive sugar cane in an arid region, using groundwater. This water-guzzling sugarcane crop is widely perceived to be one of the reasons for the severe drought in the region.

Another factor responsible for the crisis is the diversion of water to the industries and sugar factories. Sugar factories in Marathwada were operational despite the mounting water crisis. To produce 1 kg of sugar, about 2,000 litres of water are required. The sugar lobby, with strong political backing, destroyed the water usage pattern of traditional cultivation for their commercial and political interest. The helpless farmers then opted for the cultivation of soya beans and Bt cotton, which made them more dependent on money lenders for the increased cost of cultivation.

Meanwhile, it is reported that sugar factories located in Marathwada are applying for ethanol production licenses. Farmers worry about the water that will be further sucked up by the factories. To produce one litre of ethanol, 2,860 litres of water is needed.

India exported up to 5,00,000 metric tons of sugar during the October-September period against an export target of one million tons. India primarily exports sugar to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and East African countries. As sugar cane cultivation and sugar production are highly water-intensive processes, India exports huge quantities of ‘virtual water’ along with the exported sugar. This suicidal export aggravates India’s water crisis and makes farmers more vulnerable.

India is the world’s second-largest producer of sugar, which was first produced in a small factory near Kolkata by a Chinese entrepreneur (the reason why sugar is named ‘Chini’ in Bengali) towards the end of the eighteenth century. Earlier, sugar cane cultivation and sugar production were mostly undertaken in eastern India due to adequate rainfall. After independence, the powerful political leaders of West India shifted the sugar industry to the western region, resulting in the desertification of huge cultivable lands of Marathwada. Greedy politicians and the sugar lobby are solely responsible for this man-made climate disaster and the large-scale homicide of helpless farmers.

The writer is a professor of Business Administration who primarily writes on political economy, global trade, and sustainable development. Views expressed are personal