Korba (Chhattisgarh), Jan 12 (PTI) A 56-year-old farmer allegedly consumed poison after he failed to obtain the token required to sell paddy at the minimum support price (MSP) in Chhattisgarh’s Korba district,
officials said on Monday.
Sumer Singh, a resident of Korbi village under Hardibazar police station limits, is undergoing treatment at a government hospital in Korba, and a probe has been ordered, a police official said.
Talking to reporters, Singh’s wife Mukund Bai said that her husband consumed pesticide on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday, and was initially taken to the Hardibazar health centre and later referred to the district hospital in Korba.
She claimed that their paddy could not be sold at the procurement centre, as the token required for the sale could not be generated because of some errors.
“We have been trying to sell our produce for over a month, but the problem remains unresolved,” she said.
Sanjay Shrivas, a resident of Korbi, said that Singh owns 3.75 acres of land in nearby Puta village and has 68 quintals of paddy lying unsold.
He claimed the token could not be generated for nearly one and a half months. Singh does not use a mobile phone.
Shrivas alleged that the issue remained unresolved despite repeated visits to revenue and procurement officials, as well as a complaint lodged during ‘Jandarshan’ (public grievance hearing).
On receiving information about the incident, Korba Congress MP Jyotsna Mahant visited the hospital on Monday and termed the case “extremely tragic”, demanding accountability from the authorities.
“It is painful that in a state that has a tribal chief minister, a tribal farmer has been driven to consume poison. Such incidents did not occur when the Congress government was in power. Officers are acting arbitrarily, and injustice is being done to tribal farmers,” she alleged.
District Collector Kunal Dudawat said that the administration has taken note of the matter, and appropriate action is being initiated.
Steps will be taken to ensure that such incidents don’t recur, he said.
In a similar incident last month, a 65-year-old farmer had attempted suicide by slitting his throat in Mahasamund district after he allegedly failed to obtain a token to sell his paddy at MSP. PTI COR TKP ARU
