Bhopal: Chief Minister’s declaration of farm loan waiver doesn’t seem to have provided any solace to some of distressed farmers reeling under debt in the state. Days after a farmer in Khandwa hanged self because he was ineligible for loan waiver, another farmer in Shajapur committed suicide because of piling bank liabilities. A debt-ridden farmer Narayan Raghuwanshi of Kalapipal village in Shajapur district, who had consumed poison on December 20, breathed his last on Monday while undergoing treatment here at a private hospital.
Raghuvanshi had consumed poison at his home and he was referred to Bhopal. The bereaved family said that Raghuvanshi had taken Rs 3 lakh loan from a private bank. He was under depression over the mounting debts as had failed even to pay the interest amount. Depressed, he consumed poison on Thursday.
Earlier, on December 22, a farmer Juban Singh, a resident of village Astria of Khandwa district had hanged himself at his farm land. He had taken loan of Rs 3 lakh from a bank and his bore well went dry on which he had invested huge amount. Due to lack of water for irrigation, his crop had also failed. Depressed farmer hanged himself at his farmland. The farmer reportedly failed to meet the conditions of the recent farm loan waiver announced by Chief Minister Kamal Nath.
The Congress party has appealed the farmers to raise their issues before the government and not to resort to such extreme steps. “It’s very sad that farmers are committing suicide, Narayan Raghuwanshi was in depression due to various reasons and one of the problem was loan,” said local MLA Kunal Choudhary while talking to free Press. “Although the government has waived off the farm loans, but the 15-year-old mindset wherein they were cheated still persists.
Very shortly I will interact with the farmers and informed them about the government schemes,” said the MLA. The Congress state media president Sobha Oza also urged the farmers to have faith in the government. “The government is trying its level best to save the farmers lives, if the farmers are having any problem with the loan, they can raise the issue in front of the government, instead of taking the extreme step,” said Oza.
