The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday asked the Chief Secretary to submit a report on action taken by the Government for relief and rehabilitation of families of 12 Bargarh farmers, who committed suicide in 50 days.
The commission took suo-motu cognizance of a media report on the death of a farmer on December 15 and directed the Chief Secretary to submit a report within four weeks.
The NHRC has observed that a number of suicides by farmers and farm labourers are being reported from several parts of the country, including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Chhattisgarh. The Centre as well as respective State Governments should ensure that the crop loss affected farmers are not forced to resort to any extreme step.