TIRUPPUR: A farmer from Poolavadi in Tiruppur has demanded compensation from a private company after the pesticide manufactured by the firm scorched his tomato crops, which were ready for harvest. He has urged the agriculture department to take action against the pesticide manufacturer to prevent other farmers from suffering like him. M Masilamani, the farmer cultivating tomatoes on his farm, sprayed pesticide on his crops for harvest recently to ward off insects but got his ripened tomatoes scorched instead.
Masilamani said he purchased the pesticide from a private agency in Udumalaipet on September 21 after the tomato crops he cultivated, getting ready for harvest, were attacked by insects, turning the leaves yellowish. He said he usually buys pesticides from only two sellers in Poolavadi but bought them from Udumalaipet while taking his mother to a hospital there for treatment.
“On September 22, I sprayed the pesticide on the crops. The next day, all the tomato crops were scorched. The tomatoes were ready for harvest. But everything is affected by that pesticide. Currently, the retail price of tomatoes is Rs 60 per kg. This has caused me a lot of loss. I informed the local officials of the agriculture department.
But no action has been taken so far. I need the government to get me proper compensation from the pesticide manufacturer. A large number of farmers are cultivating tomatoes in Udumalaipet region. The agriculture department officials should take appropriate action to prevent anyone else from suffering like me,” he said, claiming that his loss runs into several lakhs.
Meanwhile, a senior horticulture and plantation crops department official in Tiruppur said the farm of the farmer concerned will be inspected on Monday and appropriate action will be taken.