Nanded: A 46-year-old farmer allegedly died by suicide at his farm in Borgaon village in Nanded district after suffering crop losses due to a prolonged dry spell and struggling with mounting debt and his daughter’s medical education expenses, police said.
Before his death, Shankar Abanrao Kshirsagar uploaded an emotional video on social media, appealing to the authorities over his failure to receive a loan waiver and his daughter’s unpaid medical college fees.
Kshirsagar had cultivated soybean on his small landholding, hoping for a good harvest. However, a prolonged break in rainfall reportedly damaged the crop, leaving him in financial distress. He is survived by two daughters and a son. One of his daughters is pursuing medical education, but her fees had reportedly not been waived despite an application, even as the government had announced fee concessions for students.
On Monday, around 12.30 pm, Kshirsagar went to his farm, recorded a video on his mobile phone and uploaded it to social media. After the video came to their notice, his relatives and police launched a search for him. However, he was found dead after allegedly hanging himself at the farm before the police could reach him.
In the video, Kshirsagar made an emotional appeal to the District Collector, questioning why he had not benefited from any loan-waiver scheme and why his daughter’s medical college fees remained unpaid despite an application.
“I appeal to you, Collector Saheb. There must be a loan waiver. My name has not appeared in any loan-waiver scheme, and that is why I am taking this step today. The government says students’ fees have been waived, but where has that happened? My daughter is studying medical. Despite applying for a fee waiver, her fees have not been waived. Please take our appeal seriously and investigate the matter,” he said in the video.
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