Amid rising farmer suicides in Maharashtra, a helpline run by ‘one of their own’ offers support

Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., the phone rings frequently at the Shivar helpline in Pune, Maharashtra. Many callers are men who step out into their fields so their families won’t hear them cry. “Dada, everyone is asleep,” says one caller over a scratchy line. “I’ve come out to the field to talk. I don’t have any option left...” The callers, often male farmers, list the problems they are facing. Some ask for financial support or assistance with a government scheme. Six out of ten callers, however, ask for nothing. They just want someone to talk to. In the little over a decade since the helpline was set up, its founder, Vinayak Hegana, 32, and his young team have heard it all. From farmers who feel helpless and worthless to those who say they are contemplating suicide. According to recent data obtained under the Right to Information Act by activist Jeetendra Ghadge of The Young Whistleblowers Foundation, eight or more farmers died by suicide every day in Maharashtra between January 2022 and June 2026. A total of 13,128 farmers are estimated to have taken their own lives during this period.The statistics capture the scale of the crisis, but not the loneliness that often accompanies it. That is what comes through in the calls to Shivar, where farmers reach out in the dead of night, often when they have run out of people to turn to. Shivar volunteers talk to a farmer in Maharashtra. | Photo Credit: Shivar Sansad The helpline operates from a modest, single-room office in Pune’s Erandwane. District maps, weather data and charts cover the walls. Described as an agro-psycho-social helpline, Shivar can handle 12 calls at a time. With 305 of Maharashtra’s 358 talukas declared drought-hit this year, the helpline received 6,561 calls in the month of September alone. “In 2025, we recorded a total of 7,734 calls from 31 districts. This year, in one month, we received over 6,000,” says Hegana.Distress spikes during festivals. On Dussehra this month, Shivar received 1,632 calls. Last Diwali, a farmer called early in the morning; he said he could not buy his children new clothes or firecrackers. “I’ve farmed for 15 years and can’t even do this. Am I even fit to live?” he cried.What sets the helpline apart are the people running it. Shivar’s volunteers come entirely from farming families.Distress quotientA sugarcane farmer’s son from Kolhapur, Hegana has witnessed the crisis in the agriculture sector from close quarters. An agriculturist himself and a part of the Farmers Suicide Prevention Task Force launched by the Maharashtra government, he started Shivar Sansad in 2014, after researching farmer suicides in Marathwada and Vidarbha. The helpline run by his organisation now covers 31 districts and the callers include farmers, their wives, widows, children and entire families. Vinayak Hegana, founder of Shivar Sansad. | Photo Credit: Reshmi Chakraborty A farmer’s distress is not purely psychiatric, says Hegana, who argues that generic helplines often miss this. “Distress stems from tangible, ground-level crises and ends up in the mind. What the helpline caller needs is real-time problem-solving, empathy and actionable intervention.” Hegana has developed a Farmers’ Distress Quotient Index, a screening tool that assesses callers’ suicidal tendencies alongside their social circumstances and challenges. A crop failure, he explains, can threaten not just a farmer’s livelihood but also his ability to pay for his child’s education, a daughter’s wedding or his wife’s healthcare. “A drought can set them back 5 to 6 years,” he says.With 305 of Maharashtra’s 358 talukas declared drought-hit this year, the helpline received 6,561 calls in September alone. “In 2025, we recorded a total of 7,734 calls from 31 districts. This year, in one month, we received over 6,000,” says Hegana.Speaking to their ownWhat sets the helpline apart are the people running it. Shivar’s volunteers come only from farming families. Ganesh, hailing from Buldhana, is the first in his family to pursue a Master’s degree; his parents work as farm labourers. Shristi, from Gadchiroli, is a farmer’s daughter. This lived experience helps them connect with callers. “If our own father called, or someone from our family called, what would we do? How would we explain things and talk to them?” they ask themselves when talking to farmers in distress.One night in 2025, Shristi received a call from a farmer in Yavatmal. He was standing in his field with a noose set up on a nearby tree. He had tried everything and saw no way out, he said. Having received help from Shivar in the past, he had decided to make one final call. “I listened to him and kept talking, while also reaching out to our local coordinator,” says Shristi. “Slowly, we managed to de-escalate the situation.” Shivar’s local coordinator managed to reach the farmer at four in the morning and took him safely home. Weeks later, the farmer called to thank Shristi for her timely intervention. Distress spikes during festivals. On Dussehra this month, Shivar received 1,632 calls. Last Diwali, a farmer called early in the morning; he said he could not buy his children new clothes or firecrackers. “I’ve farmed for 15 years and can’t even do this. Am I even fit to live?” he cried.Hegana himself handles the high-risk cases sometimes. He once took a call from a farmer in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (formerly Aurangabad). “He wanted to say what was on his mind, and then end his life. I called him dada (elder brother),” says Hegana. The man started crying. The last person to call him dada had been his brother, an Army man killed on duty a decade ago. “You sound like my brother,” he told Hegana. He could no longer end it all, because someone had picked up the phone and spoken to him like family. The helpline staff has stayed in touch with him ever since. Last year, Shivar says it helped 198 farmers at high risk of suicide. Vinayak Hegana (far left) and his team talk to a farmer. Hegana also visits farmers in their villages, sometimes after midnight, for counselling and practical assistance, while maintaining their privacy.Not all callers are men, however. This September, the helpline received calls from 819 women and several girl students, struggling to pay either rent or college fees. Older women sometimes call when debt has driven their husbands to silence. Recently, a young girl, whose brother had died by suicide, called in fear that her father would take his own life because drought would leave him unable to repay the loans he might take for her wedding. “Should I die instead?” she asked.Their loneliness is evident: That is what comes through in the calls to Shivar, where farmers reach out in the dead of night, often when they have run out of people to turn to.Real-time problem-solvingThis year, Maharashtra received 18% less rainfall. Ghadge, who sourced the RTI data on farmer suicides, says that the core reason behind these untimely deaths is economic distress that leads to mental health problems like depression. Ghadge has tracked farmer suicides for over 15 years and says the problem has only been rising despite the launch of several welfare schemes. In an effort to address this, Shivar coordinates with district collectors and local government representatives to help farmers access help, sometimes in real time. Volunteers connect callers directly with officials while they are still on the line. It’s a network painstakingly built by Hegana and his team over the past 12 years. They also work towards building a bond with distressed callers — calling a younger man dada, an older one kaka. The instant connect can go a long way towards saving lives. At the Shivar helpline’s office in Pune. | Photo Credit: Reshmi Chakraborty Shivar’s approach rests on four pillars — counselling, guidance, mentorship and help. Volunteers begin by reassuring callers: “We are with you. We’ll solve this together.” They then assess what has gone wrong and identify possible solutions. Hegana says about 70% of problems are addressed through existing government schemes and resources. Even when a problem cannot be fully resolved, he says a farmer’s sense of isolation can change. “Because someone is listening to them.”Without any government funding, the helpline runs on donor support. Given the volume of calls, Hegana says a team of 40 to 50 volunteers would be ideal. Right now, they are a team of eight. He hopes eventually to establish a helpline for farmers in every regional language.“After a suicide, you’ll find many people coming forward to help the victim’s family in different ways. Somebody will help with education, somebody else with livelihood,” says Hegana. “We want to help before someone takes the extreme step.”The writer is a freelance journalist and co-author of ‘Rethink Ageing’.Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on Tele-MANAS 14416, and Shivar helpline: 8955771115.