The above are the proximate causes of suicide. Other than addressing the immediate causes, the government also has to address the mistakes in agriculture policies at a much broader level. Productivity in Indian agriculture has been falling as a consequence of policy mistakes. While there are a number of measures like the development of weather derivatives and futures markets, institutional credit and free movement of agricultural goods that can make a big difference, one of the crucial constraints lies in the lack of public investment in agriculture. Since a large chunk of the money spent on agriculture gets spent on food subsidy, which mainly goes directly to surplus-producing cereal farmers in Harayana, Punjab and UP, there is little scope for the government to spend on investment in irrigation in the semi-arid zones or rainfed areas where distress levels are among the highest today.

The political economy of cereal farming has produced enormous distortions. In 1991 the central government spent a total of Rs 239 crore on capital expenditure in agriculture. It spent a total of Rs 223 crore on plan expenditure on irrigation and flood control. But it spent Rs 2,450 crore on food subsidy. Over the years the situation worsened. The expenditure on food subsidy has increased ten-

-fold. On irrigation and public investment it has barely increased. In 2005 the central government spent a total of Rs 176 crore on capital expenditure in agriculture. It spent a total of Rs 458 crore on irrigation and flood control. But it spent Rs 25,800 crore on food subsidy.

... contd.