Kin of deceased farmers await govt assistance

- 180 families of deceased farmers cry out for government’s help
- The officials, at the mandal level said to have failed to work on time and families were forced to visit the government offices frequently
- Out of 247 farmers suicides from 2014, government had been able to assist only 67 families

Adilabad: As many as 180 families of farmers, who had allegedly committed suicide, are yet to get the long-awaited State government assistance.

The delay on the part of the government is said to have lead the families into anxiety.

According to the sources, so far only 67 families said to have received the assistance from the government.

It is to be mention that from the year 2014, more than 247 farmers had taken the extreme step of ending their lives due to burden of debt.

In a clear data of farmers suicides, 73 in2014, 101 in 2015, 67 in 2016 and three more farmers in this month.

The SI, MRO and AO at the mandal level said to have failed to identify the farmers who had ended their lives. Besides the reports, the RDO, the DSP and the Division Agriculture Officer have to approve the reports. Also, the officials have to submit FIRs, reports of the post-mortem along with two other certificates.

The affected families have to provide the bank statements, passbooks, pattadar passbooks, proof of taking loans from private money-lenders and receipts of expenditure incurred in raising crops.

These documents have to be certified by the officials. Only after such reports are accepted the State assistance is released.

Some officials said to be making misuse by submitting faulty reports without consulting the family members of the farmers.

Rythu Atmahatyala Nivarana Sangham president Boranna said that the deceased farmers family members have appealed to the government to drop the stipulation of submitting 14 documents for securing assistance, as they are being forced to the government offices most often for securing relief from the administration Speaking to The Hans India, he appealed to the government to extend immediate ex-gratia as relief to these families, while expressing anxiety over the hardships being faced by them.

A farmers’ leader, Praveen, while expressing anguish over the plight of the affected families, told The Hans India that the government assistance is being denied to the members of 87 families on minor grounds, leading to heavy financial loss to them.

Some farmers organisations appealed to the administration to relax the regulations so as to enable the families to receive the ex-gratia.

Praveen demanded that an FIR copy and a resolution of the 'gram sabha' on the farmers' suicide should form the basis for extending government assistance to the affected' families.

Lakshmi, widow of Chenchu Beemanna of Bheemasari village in Thamsi mandal, who broke down while speaking to THI, said her family was being forced to repeatedly approach the Revenue and Police officials for securing the reports to collect the ex-gratia amounts.

She expressed distress that officials of the two departments were indifferent to the pitiable conditions of the affected families.

Members of the farmers' families have issued an appeal to the administration to extend relief so that their condition could be improved by clearing the pending loans. They point out that while they were in grief following the death of the bread-winner creditors were resorting to harassment, demanding clearance of loans.

The families want the government to provide admission in residential institutions to their children who were forced to discontinue study following the suicide of the breadwinner.

Thota Chinna Anjaiah