AT several places in the predominantly rural district of Wayanad, some with exotic names such as `Parudeesa' (Paradise), local traders, doctors and owners of small businesses told Frontline that the crisis in the farm sector had had a cascading effect on their incomes and lives. At Pulpally, Vigneswar Bhat, a doctor, who had been running a dispensary in the village for over 15 years, said he planned to move very soon because there were "very few patients who can afford to pay at least for the medicines". The owner of the local provision store said that there was a 50 per cent drop in the sale of rice at his shop. At `Sita Mount', near the centuries-old temple dedicated to Sita and her sons, Lava and Kusa, a local trader said business was dull and complained that regular customers were piling up their dues. At the 26-year-old `Prateeksha' cinema, Babu, the manager, is aghast at the turn of events over the past two years. The 500-seat theatre is almost empty on most days; the first day's show hardly gets an audience of about 30 persons. A movie runs for three days, at the most.
Another group hit hard by the crisis is farm labourers. A number of them have left the district in search of work in other districts such as Kottayam and Ernakulam and in plantations in the Kodagu region of Karnataka. According to some villagers in the worstaffected areas, at least one member from each household has left in search of jobs elsewhere, including young women, who are in demand as house maids and home nurses.
A flourishing dairy sector has also been affected, with farmers struggling to find fodder for their cattle. "We own three cows and used to grow grass for fodder. This year the cattle survived entirely on straw and milk production has come down by 30 per cent," Thomas, a farmer, said.
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