Farmers Distress Index Helps In Minimizing Agrarian Distress In Crop-Loss Failure & Income Loss

Farmers Distress Index: The Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture in India has developed an early warning system called the "farmers distress index" to help identify and address agricultural problems. The index is nearing completion and will be given to the government in the next few months.

What is Farmers Distress Index?

The Farmers Distress Index, currently being developed as a mobile or desktop application, is an early warning system created by the Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA). The aim of the index is to reduce agrarian distress, such as crop loss and income shock, which has been increasing in recent years due to extreme climate events and market fluctuations. By predicting and pre-warning stakeholders about future instances of farmers’ distress, the index aims to prevent its spread and enable timely preventive measures to be taken.

Methods To Track Farmer’s Distress

A methodology has been developed to track distress among farmers. The first step involves searching local newspapers, news platforms, and social media for reports on various issues such as debt repayment problems, suicides, pest attacks, droughts, floods, and migration. The next step is to collect contact information of small and marginal farmers and conduct telephonic interviews using a set of standardized questions. 

These questions aim to assess early signs of distress and will be mapped against seven indicators, including exposure to risks, debt, adaptive capacity, landholding, and socio-psychological factors. It is important to note that not all exposures to risk lead to distress if farmers have sufficient adapting capacity and follow mitigation strategies.

How Will Farmers Distress Index Work?

The index will measure the level of distress among farmers and will have values ranging from 0 to 1. Values below 0.5 indicate low distress, values between 0.5 and 0.7 indicate moderate distress and values above 0.7 indicate severe distress. If the index indicates severe distress, it will also identify which specific component contributes the most to the farmers' distress.

The index is currently being developed as a mobile or desktop application. Once completed, it will be shared with the central and state governments, agriculture departments, rural development departments, agriculture universities, non-profits, and civil society organizations.