Bidar: A heartbreaking story of determination and survival has recently emerged from Hallikhed village in Humnabad taluk of Bidar district where an elderly couple has been forced to pull a traditional seed drill themselves after financial hardships and poor monsoon rains left them with no other option.
The couple, Tippanna and Gangamma, own a small piece of farmland that is their only source of income. Without money to buy a tractor and even to rent a pair of bullocks, they decided to sow their field by pulling the seed drill across the land.
They’ve attracted attention after photographs of the couple working shoulder to shoulder in the field showed the hardships of small and marginal farmers in a monsoon season that has become uncertain.
They had initially sown black gram (urad) in the hope that rains would arrive on time. However, the prolonged dry spell meant the seeds failed to germinate, so the first seed they sowed was ultimately lost.
However, the elderly farmers were not inclined to give up and continued to sow. Hoping for rain, they have now begun a second round of sowing of pigeon pea (toor dal) in the same field again.
Gangamma walked alongside her husband, pulling the seed drill through the soil—a task usually done by bullocks or tractors. Their resilience is in keeping with the fact that many farmers can’t afford basic agricultural resources.
The couple said they have no permanent house, very little land, and have not received any government assistance. Financial constraints have made it impossible for them to afford mechanised farming or hiring labourers, so they are left to rely on their own physical effort.
"We have no choice but to work like this to earn our livelihood," they said, anxious to hope for rain and save the crop.
Their situation highlights the hardships of farmers in some other parts of north Karnataka, where delayed and erratic monsoon rainfall has affected sowing activities. Many cultivators have already accrued losses from re-sowing and are now under severe financial pressure.
Agriculture experts say repeated sowing not only increases cultivation costs but also reduces farmers' income prospects, especially for the farmers who have less land and no financial backing.
The emotional story of Tippanna and Gangamma has resonated with many people, and citizens have been calling for immediate support from the government and elected officials. Locals have asked local governments to help with financial assistance, agricultural inputs, and welfare benefits to help the couple continue to farm with dignity.
So as they look up to the sky and pray for rain, the elderly couple’s resolve is a testament to the resilience of India’s farming community, and the need for the people in India to feed the country despite the odds.
