Khammam: Disturbed at being unable to get remunerative prices for his chilli crop, K. Ramesh, a farmer from Kakaravai under Tirumalayapalem mandal tried to immolate himself on Saturday. Ramesh, who cultivated chilli in his two acres of farmland, was worried over the plummeting chilli prices. He had taken a loan of Rs 1 lakh to raise the crop.
Ramesh was worried that if he sold his chilli at the prevailing market prices, he would not even get Rs 40,000. On Saturday, he poured a bottle full of kerosene over himself and lit a fire. Ramesh’s family members, who noticed the fire, managed to douse the fire. He was shifted to a private hospital in Khammam where he is undergoing treatment. Doctors said that he suffered 30 per cent burns and said that he was out of danger.
Market yard turns a fortress
Khammam market yard resembled a fortress on Saturday, with about 10 cops deployed at each weighing machine. The presence of such a huge number of cops instilled a sense of fear among the farmers there.
Cops from various police stations in Khammam and Bhadradri-Kothagudem districts have been posted in the market yard and other places in Khammam.
About 2 lakh chilli bags were dumped in the market yard and the roads surrounding it on Saturday. Lifting of the produce was tardy; many farmers were disappointed at the '2,500 to '5,500 per quintal offered.
Many of the farmers started taking back their produce to their villages. The e-Nam transactions were also hit following Friday’s ransacking of the market yard offices. About 30 computers, 50 tables, racks and e-Nam machines were damaged on Friday. Interestingly, about 250 weighing machines belonging to the traders were also damaged by the angry farmers.
According to an estimate, the loss was around Rs 2 crore.Market committee chairman K. Krishna said that the farmers ransacked the furniture in three offices located in the market.
Marketing director Laxmibai visited the market and enquired about issues like the price of chilli and the reasons behind the farmers’ fury.
