Fear for one’s survival, debt and suicide determine the lives of many farmers in India. Many farmers escaped the debt trap by the “fight against hunger programme” in Vuyyuru, a small town in the Krishna district in the south-east of India, the programme began three years ago with 540 Indian male and female farmers. Here, they were trained by agricultural engineers in the cultivation of new products and the sale of their crops. In addition, they were explained to use organic fertilizer and to dispense with pesticides.

More than 450 female farmers are still in the process after three years. One of them proudly reports: „80 percent of the women use their plots of land attached to their houses and huts for“ kitchen gardens „and have grown so many pumpkins, cucumbers, tomatoes, aubergines, curcuma, beans, papayas (see photo), guavas and physalis that it is sufficient for their own needs. In addition, our crops have now a very good reputation in the market.”

The women not only have regularly repaid their loans for the seed, but also paid 100 rupees into a joint account every month. They have established a joint cooperative with all 18 villages. They give the saved money as small loans for medical treatments and school supplies for families need from the villages. A successful model initiated by Christians to help people help themselves in a Hindu environment.

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