Kerala: 62-year-old award-winning farmer dies after consuming pesticide

Thiruvananthapuram: A farmer ended life in Kerala suspected to be due to financial stress.

Ambattu Elias, 62, of Cherupuzha in Kannur district of Kerala died on Sunday. Elias, who was into cultivation over the last four decades, was a recipient of several awards for farmers.

Elias was found unconscious at his farm on Wednesday after consuming pesticide. He was rushed to hospital and was under treatment. But he died by Sunday, said the local police.

According to his relatives, he was suffering huge financial liabilities as cultivation was not becoming profitable. Elias was cultivating different types of crops including vegetables and plantains by leasing lands and on own land in Kannur as well as neighbouring Kasargod.

"Over the last many years he used to lament that he was suffering loss in cultivation mainly since the yield used to be poor due to factors like climate change and produce was not getting adequate price. This led to accumulation of financial liabilities, which ran to several lakhs of rupees," his relative Shinto told DH.