TIRUVANNAMALAI: With the season of distress continuing, three farmers died of heart attack in Tiruvannamalai, Cuddalore and Nagapattinam districts, while another committed suicide in Villupuram.
The deceased farmer in Tiruvannamalai has been identified as Mannu, hailing from Chellankuppam near Vettavalam. Sources said he had cultivated sugarcane, black gram and groundnut in his farm. But due to scanty rain during the northeast monsoon and depletion of water in his farm well, the crops began to wilt in the last one month.
Around 7 am, while in his field, Mannu collapsed, said sources in the revenue department quoting his family members. Though he was rushed to Medical College hospital in Tiruvannamalai, he was declared brought dead by doctors.
In a similar incident in Cuddalore, G Senthamizan (62) of Azankathan village near Kattumannarkoil died of shock after seeing his spoiled paddy crop. Though he was taken to the government hospital at Kattumannarkoil by fellow farmers, he was declared brought dead by the doctors.
Senthamizan is being survived by a 30-year-old mentally-challenged daughter Vennila and a son Loganathan, who is studying Class 12.
Speaking to Express, a relative of the farmer said, “Senthamizan did direct sowing for Samba cultivation in his four acres. He spend more than Rs 1 lakh on crops and another Rs 1 lakh for linking a new borewell. The region did not receive a single drop of water from the Cauvery.”
In Villupuram, a drought-affected farmer in Devadhanampettai near Gingee committed suicide by hanging. The deceased was identified as Murugan Vijayaragavan (50). He had cultivated paddy in the three-and-a-half acres of land he got from Thilairasan of the same village on lease. Due to the scanty rainfall, Murugan’s crops wilted.
In Nagapattinam district, one more farmer died of heart attack. Thambusamy (57) of Keezha Kaavaalakudi in Venmani Panchayat had taken up Samba cultivation on two acres, but it had started to wilt due to lack of rains.