HUBBALLI: Two farmers were killed after the land surrounding a defunct borewell caved in Savadi village in Ron taluk of Gadag district on Wednesday.
The bodies of Shankarappa Banad and Basavaraj Pattanashetti, who were found buried under 30 ft of soil, were recovered after four-hours-long rescue operations by Fire and Emergency Services.
The duo was trying to remove casing pipe of a defunct borewell in a farmland that belonged to Shankarappa Banad when the land beneath their feet caved in and they fell into a 30 feet deep crater.
Sources said that as the casing pipes fetch good return in the market, it is common for farmers to sell the pipe once the borewell became defunct.
Gadag deputy commissioner Manoj Jain visited to the spot.