Duty amid despair: Unseen sacrifice of India's Agromet workers fighting climate chaos

On March 31 this year, Agromet workers' salaries were finally released following court intervention -- a long-awaited relief after a year marked by sacrifice, resilience and quiet hope.

New Delhi: When the government ordered the closure of 199 District Agrometeorological Units (DAMUs) in January 2024, around 130 employees chose to stay -- unpaid but unwavering -- because farmers still relied on them.

They went to court, secured a stay and kept working, helping farmers navigate worsening weather and rising climate risks.

On March 31 this year, their salaries were finally released following court intervention -- a long-awaited relief after a year marked by sacrifice, resilience and quiet hope.

"I could not pay my daughter's school fees. I folded my hands before the principal and promised to pay soon. I kept my head down, but inside, I was breaking," said one DAMU employee from Rajasthan, requesting anonymity.

His voice quivered as he recalled how his family had to cut back on food.

"We stopped buying tomatoes or onions when prices shot up. Sometimes, we skipped vegetables altogether. We survived on lentils and rice. My children would ask, 'Why don't we eat like we used to?' How do I explain that we just do not have the money?" At times, he felt so hopeless he considered switching to a lower-paying job, just to earn something.

Another DAMU staffer from Rajasthan, who is soon to become a father for a second time, told PTI his family has been surviving on the kindness of others. "Every month, I tell my landlord the same thing: 'Abhi salary nahi aayi hai'," he said, his tone conveying more than his words.

He spoke about the pain of watching his loved ones let go of life's little joys. "I want to take my family out for a meal or buy something nice for my child. But I cannot. I feel helpless." "When someone in the family gets sick, I just pray it's not serious. Because we simply do not have the money for treatment," he said.

In Uttar Pradesh, one DAMU observer allegedly lost his mother to illness. His colleagues say he could not "arrange timely care because he had not been paid in months".

PTI could not speak directly to the staffer, but it mirrors the pain many DAMU staff describe -- a silent capitulation under the weight of neglect.

In Maharashtra, another staffer received repeated notices from the bank after defaulting on his home loan.

"My daughter would show me messages from her school's WhatsApp group -- other parents sharing fee receipts. I had nothing to show. I felt like I failed her." From Madhya Pradesh, a DAMU employee said he delayed buying crucial medicine for a chronic condition. "I bought it on March 31, the day my salary landed. That was the first thing I did." Now in his mid-thirties, he says he feels stuck. He is too qualified for some jobs, not qualified enough for others. "Private companies want different skill sets. And at this age, getting a secure government job is like winning a lottery." What keeps him going? "When farmers say, 'because of you, we did not lose our harvest'. That means everything." One DAMU employee from Uttar Pradesh was miles away when his father passed away. "I could not get leave. By the time, I reached home, he was already cremated. That's a pain I will carry forever. I did my job with devotion. What did I get?" Mahesh Yadulwar, a DAMU employee from Maharashtra, said salary delays were nothing new. "When I joined, we got regular salaries for three-four months. Then the delays began. During the Covid period, we worked without pay for over a year."

He paused before adding, "We suffered quietly so that farmers do not." "I never say no to a farmer. If they call me to their fields, I go, even if it means hopping onto a tractor or squeezing into a crowded bus. I cannot afford fuel, but I cannot let them down either," said a DAMU staffer from Uttar Pradesh.

Many of these DAMU staff hold advanced degrees in agrometeorology, agriculture and climate science. Some have published research papers, taught at colleges and even written books. They left academic or private paths to serve on the ground, to help farmers adapt to changing weather and rising climate risks.

Most are now in their late thirties or forties. Many say they are too old to restart.

"We served the system with heart. Now, the same system acts like we never existed," said a staffer.

But even when institutions turned away, farmers did not.

"When things were at their worst, some farmers brought vegetables, wheat, rice, not as charity but out of respect," said Sanddep Kumar from a DAMU centre in Madhya Pradesh. "I could not accept much, but some days, that food is what kept my family going." India launched Agromet Advisory Services in 1976 to help farmers make informed decisions. Since 1993, 130 Agromet Field Units have been set up in partnership with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to provide timely, crop-specific advice. Each unit supports farmers across 5-“6 districts.

In 2012, the government launched the Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa to expand the reach of these advisories. By 2018, plans were made to set up 530 DAMUs as part of a pilot project. But due to the Covid pandemic, only 199 were established.

Each DAMU employed two contract workers -- a Subject Matter Specialist (Agrometeorology), earning Rs 93,000 to Rs 1.04 lakh per month including allowances, and an Agromet Observer, earning Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000.

In February 2023, the NITI Aayog raised concerns about the model's sustainability and suggested a centralised data system instead. In January 2024, the IMD ordered all DAMUs to shut down by March-end, 2024.

The move left employees in limbo and farmers worried.

Senior leaders like Nitin Gadkari and Jairam Ramesh have since raised questions about the closure. The Maharashtra-based Agrometeorological Units Association has petitioned the Prime Minister's Office, Ministry of Earth Sciences and Ministry of Agriculture to reconsider the decision.

A senior official told PTI that the government plans to build a more structured system to continue the DAMUs' important work. However, a formal decision has not been taken yet.

For the employees who stayed behind -- unpaid, yet unrelenting -- the wait continues.