KENDRAPARA/BERHAMPUR: Widespread damage to standing crops by the unseasonal rains has claimed lives of two farmers across the state which is in the midst of kharif paddy procurement.
A sharecropper ended his life in Ganjam while another farmer died of shock in Kendrapara after watching his paddy harvest destroyed by the showers. Both the incidents were reported on Wednesday.
In Ganjam’s Chatrapur block, a 64-year-old farmer of Barang village under Badamadhapur panchayat allegedly died by suicide over the crop loss. The farmer, Banamali Penthei had raised paddy over five acres of land on a sharecropping basis but saw his hard work washed away by the relentless rains.
A father of three daughters and a son, Banamali had borrowed around ₹2 lakh from private lenders for the cultivation. On the morning of the incident, he visited his farmland to find the paddy fields submerged in water. Distraught, he returned home and took his life by hanging himself in the bathroom outside of his house. His sister, Apasara recounted that Banamali had been deeply worried about repaying his loans.
Ganjam Collector, Dibya Jyoti Parida confirmed the farmer’s death but stated that authorities are probing the exact reason behind the suicide. Chatrapur police reached the spot, sent the body for postmortem and initiated an investigation. Ganjam has been reeling under continued rains, leading to extensive crop damage.
Meanwhile, in Kendrapara, 52-year-old Gourahari Mallick died of cardiac arrest. A resident of Santhapur village under Derabishi block, he was rushed to the district headquarters hospital where doctors declared him dead.
Ramakant Mallick, a local, said Gourahari had raised paddy crops on over three acre land after obtaining Rs 60,000 loan from Santhapura PACS and Rs 50,000 more from a bank to purchase paddy seeds and fertilisers. “But the unseasonal rains shattered his hopes of a good harvest,” he added. Gourahari is survived by a family of five.
Crop loss by rains claims lives of two farmers in Odisha
His wife Mina said their future looks bleak after her husband’s death.
“Had there been no unseasonal rains, we would be busy harvesting our paddy crops now. My husband was very disturbed over the damage caused to his crops,” she added.
Contacted, additional district magistrate (ADM), Kendrapara, Nilu Mohapatra said the matter is being investigated. “The Derabishi tehsildar has been directed to take stock of the situation and submit a report following which the district administration will take steps to provide help to the deceased’s family,” he added.