BHUBANESWAR : Two paddy farmers allegedly attempted to end their lives by consuming poison during a public grievance hearing at the Rajnagar tehsil office in Kendrapara district on Monday, in protest against the alleged failure of authorities to demolish illegal shrimp farms. The illegal farms have rendered their agricultural land barren and uncultivable, they alleged.
The incident occurred while district collector Raghuram R Iyer was presiding over the grievance redressal hearing and listening to petitions from residents.
The two farmers, identified as Ganesh Mohanty (55) of Dholamara and Ramkrushna Mandal (54) of Talachua village near Bhitarkanika National Park, suddenly attempted to consume poison. However, police personnel present at the spot intervened and prevented them from taking the extreme step. Police seized two bottles of poison from the duo, Rajnagar police station IIC Chandrika Mohapatra said.
The farmers had earlier approached the authorities several times, alleging substantial crop losses due to illegal shrimp farming activities in their area. They claimed that contaminated water discharged from the farms was flowing into adjoining agricultural fields, damaging the soil and crops and causing a sharp decline in yield.
“We ran from pillar to post, from the collector to the DFO of Bhitarkanika National Park, seeking redressal of our grievances. But all our efforts proved futile. The rich and influential shrimp cultivators have gone unpunished as officials allegedly connived with them. As a last resort, we decided to end our lives,” the farmers said.
“I used to cultivate paddy on my land. But my land recently lost its fertility after a shrimp farm owner started releasing effluent from his nearby gherri to my agricultural fields,” Ganesh said.
Concerns of farmers will be examined, says collector
Collector Iyer said the grievances raised by the farmers were being examined and would be addressed on a priority basis. Residents alleged that the proliferation of shrimp farms in coastal and riverside villages had damaged agricultural land through the discharge of untreated effluents.
Umesh Chandra Singh, president of the district unit of Krushak Sabha, said several villages were now protesting against the unchecked growth of shrimp farms. Villagers also alleged that influential persons had converted large tracts of government and forest land into shrimp farms.
They said many paddy farmers were noticing white patches on the topsoil and a gradual decline in soil productivity, which they attributed to the presence of shrimp farms.
