A Kollam tribal, Kasar did not have land in his name and was tilling the family’s joint holding, villagers say. In the last three-four years, there have been two more suicides. Much has changed 15 years down the line at Kalatvati’s Jalka village in Yavatmal district.
Kalavati Bandurkar became the poster woman of Vidarbha’s agrarian crisis after Rahul Gandhi visited her home in 2008. He mentioned her during the no-trust motion of 2008. Again in 2023, Union home minister Amit Shah spoke of her during the no-confidence motion against the BJP government.
Shah said Rahul only went to Kalavati’s home but, it was only during BJP’s term in office that she got all the benefits, like a house, electricity, and water connection.
Kalavati rejected these claims, saying her life changed only because of Rahul. Her husband, Parshuram Bandurkar, died by suicide driven by farm crisis.
Over 15 years later, even the life of other villagers has changed with time, residents say. There are roads, electricity, and water connections without interruption. Living standards have improved with smart phones, even refrigerators and TVs in almost each household. Jalka has a population of over 1,400, locals told TOI. Yet, what the villagers lack is complete financial security. It’s still tough for dryland farmers.
Incomes have gone up but so have expenses. Suicides have not stopped, villagers say. “The situation is better since 2008. The village has all the basic facilities. The development happened gradually and can’t be attributed to any single party. Many of the things happened before 2014,” Shekhar Moghe, deputy sarpanch of Jalka, says.
It is not only Kalavati’s life that has changed, it is the same for others, too, says Sunil Kumar, the sarpanch’s husband. “There was poverty till 2007. I could not even think of buying a motorbike, but I have a four-wheeler now. Conditions began to change 2011-12 onwards. This was only due to economic cycles,” Milind Moghe, who tills 50 acres of family holding, says. “We are better off because of irrigation facilities. Life is still tough for dryland farmers,” he says.
“Things have changed but there has not been a complete transformation. Locals may have purchased gadgets, motorbikes, even send their children to private schools. But maintaining expenses remains a struggle. Farming is still not remunerative,” Nitin Khadse, a villager, said.
The government must provide irrigation facilities and assistance for building houses, especially for members of OBC community; their traditional homes are now giving way, but it’s tough to get bank loans or aid under government schemes, he says.
Villagers also complained that the connecting road to the village from the highway has been damaged and needs urgent repairs.