Six farmers commit suicide in Karnataka

Six farmers ended their lives in the State on Sunday. Two of them are from Mandya district.

Thirty-year-old Umesh committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree in Karalakatte village of Malavalli taluk in Mandya district. Umesh and his brother jointly owned four acres of land. He had taken up silk farming and planted banana on the said land, both of which did not fetch him remunerative price. He is said to be having loans to the tune of Rs four lakh.

Devaraj alias Devu (24) hung himself to death from a tree at his land in Chikkabyadarahalli village of Pandavapura taluk in Mandya district.

He had borrowed Rs 30,000 from a bank and more than Rs three lakh from private persons. According to the complaint lodged by his father, Devaraj ended life fearing inability to repay loans.

Srinivas (42), a farmer from Chikkahonnavalli village in Tiptur taluk of Tumakuru district hung himself to death on Sunday. He owned three acres of land and had borrowed farm loans from banks in the name of his mother. He is also said to have taken loans from private persons. According to the complaint lodged by his wife, Srinivas ended his life owing to debt burden and crop loss.

A 35-year-old woman farmer, who had consumed poison on Saturday, breathed last on her way to hospital on Sunday in Gujanur village of Yadgir taluk. Tayamma Gunjalappa, a resident of Babala village in Shahpur taluk, had obtained a lease of 24 acres of farmland in Gunjanur two years ago. She had taken loans of Rs five lakh for agricultural activities.  According to her family members, the crops failed due to paucity of rains because of which Tayamma was dejected and ended her life.

Eshwarappa Doddappa Ammapura (57) of Mudanur K village in Surpur taluk of Yadgir district committed suicide by consuming poison. He owned 3.5 acres of land and had suffered losses by growing paddy for the last two years. He is said to have borrowed a total of Rs three lakh.

A debt-ridden farmer ended his by life by consuming poison at Nidoni village in Vijayapura taluk. The deceased has been identified as Nagappa Agasara (40). Nagappa had grown sugar cane and grapes on his three acre land and is said to have loans to the tune of about Rs four lakh.

32 deaths in N-K

As many as 32 farmers have committed suicide in the six districts of North Karnataka during the period April-July 2015.

Prof Sangeetha Kattimani, an economist from Kalaburagi, says that, going by the media reports, a majority of these farmers had borrowed loans from private money lenders.  Most of these are small and marginal farmers and are in the 22-45 age group.