Mumbai: A debt-ridden farmer has ended his life by consuming poison. The tiller took the extreme step on March 1 in Ahmednagar. According to police, the deceased, Rajendra Tukaram Markad, 55, is survived by wife and five children. Tukaram owned four acres. He grew sugarcane. Due to the drought in the area, he lost his crop. What was left in the three acres was only nine tonnes, which would have hardly earned him Rs18,000.
Reportedly, Tukaram had last year borrowed money from a moneylender for his daughter’s wedding on the promise of timely repayment. He had also taken a loan from a bank. But due to the drought condition, as he lost his sugarcane crop and suffered huge losses, he failed to repay the money.
Depressed over his financial situation and unable to return the loan, Tukaram consumed poison on March 1. He was rushed to a private hospital, where he died during the treatment. According to his relatives, he had taken a loan of Rs2,50,000 from Zilla Sahakari Bank and had borrowed money from a moneylender. Other farmers had requested the government for financial help on an earlier occasion also, but to no avail.
