Hyderabad:
For Ramu and Shekhar, aged 16 and 14, their father's suicide has brought all the grief of losing a parent, and the likelihood of turning from young students passionate about their studies to bonded labour. Their mother hopes they will be employed by a big landlord or local
sahukar (moneylender) who will pay Rs 10,000 as advance wages for a year. Deals like this in the region usually include free food - a major concern for the boys' mother, Lakshmamma.
A couple of potential "buyers" have expressed interest. Terms are being negotiated. The transaction, illegal, is not uncommon at all in an area replete with farmers seeped in debt.
Ram and Shekhar's father, Bangaru Mallaih, owned nearly five acres at one time. He invested heavily in borewells that failed, and surrendered some of his land as his debt mounted. Today, his family owns less than three acres. Severe drought this year in Andhra Pradesh brought the same devastation that it has to so many others. With a failed crop and debts that crossed two lakhs, Mallaiah became desperate. Unable to cope with the humiliation hurled at him by debtors, he sold the nine goats the family owned for about Rs 1000 rupees each when their market value was Rs 3000. Lakshmamma was counting on the goats to either bring in some much-needed income, or to feed her family. A quarrel over this wife was followed by Mallaiah hanging himself the next morning from the
neem tree next to their small home.
The government says this is not a case of a "genuine" farmer suicide, attributing Bangaru's death to a fight with his wife. So his widow is not entitled to the compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh that is state policy.
Lakshmamma is desperate to ensure the family does not lose their modest home. Ownership deeds have been snatched by those to who she owes money. So the only way out for her now is to turn her school-going sons into labourers, so she can at least partly repay the debt.
"So we can get some money, my mother asked me to stop school and work as bonded labour. Otherwise how will we repay the debt? But I want to study and get a job," says Ramu, who was in Class 11 till he dropped out.
Fourteen-year-old Shekhar can hardly stop his tears. He is too young to be called a man and too old not to understand how tough his father's last days were. "To repay loans, he sold the goats at a low price," he says.
The government says its unable to help. "The husband sold the goats cheap, so the wife fought with him, and due to a family dispute, he committed suicide," states Kishan Naik, the official who handled the inquiry.
HOW YOU CAN HELPIf you'd like to make a donation to this family, please make out your cheque to SBI, a/c no 11493844258.
Address: Lakshmamma, w/o Bangaru Mallaiah, H.No 1-40, BC Colony, Bijinapally village and mandal, Mahbubnagar district, Andhra Pradesh.