A team comprising the Baleswar district Collector and Superintendent of Police on Thursday visited the residence of deceased farmer Sudam Khatua in Sadar block and spoke to his family and fellow villagers.
Khatua allegedly committed suicide unable to bear the heavy loan burden. The locals said Khatua had taken a loan of Rs 15,000 from his nieghbour and supposed to return Rs 25,000. He had also borrowed Rs 10,000 from the local Gajalaxmi puja committee
and would have paid back Rs 18,000.
He also availed a loan of Rs 10,000 from another source and supposed to pay back Rs 16,000. He had also borrowed money from a micro finance company and was regularly paying the installments. However, as the crops were damaged, he might have taken the drastic step.
Notably, the 40-year-old farmer had consumed pesticide and breathed his last at the SCB Medical College Hospital in Cuttack on Wednesday.
His brother-in-law Ratnakar Tarei said Sudam didn’t possess any agricultual land and he had undertaken share cropping in three acres of land. For the reason he had obtained a hand loan of Rs 1.5 lakh with high interest.
As a share cropper he had grown various vegetables like tomato, cauliflower, cabbage and chilly. Yet he didn’t get the right return against the investment and labour when the yield was high in the current season.
After Sudam’s death, local Tehsildar Rashmi Rekha Pradhan and Sadar block Chairman Naryan Pradhan and other officials had also visited his house on Wednesday. Earlier, Collector Pramod Das had promised an inquiry into the incident.