PALAKKAD: A debt-ridden farmer committed suicide by consuming pesticide here on Sunday night. Chandran, 55, of Pallikad House at Peruvembu had consumed pesticide Ecalax at 9.30 pm on Sunday. Rushed to the Thrissur Medical College, Chandran died on the way to the hospital.“Chandran had taken a loan of Rs 5 lakh from the Peruvembu Co-operative Service Bank by pledging his 15 cent plot with house and 50 cents of agricultural land. Chandran, who was also a dairy farmer, had received an award for best farmer. The loan amount taken from the Co-operative Service Bank was used to repay the loans he had taken earlier,” director of the Peruvembu Service Co-operative Bank Mohanan told Express. R Vasudevan, another director of the Peruvembu Co-operative Service Bank said Chandran had taken the loan of Rs 5 lakh on August 30, 2011 and repaid `1,38,000 along with interest early this month. He said the bank had not sent any notice to Chandran as it usually did so only after a six-month delay in repaying. However, Chandran lost money in agriculture and trading of cows from Tamil Nadu.Chandran is survived by wife Indira Devi, son Shaji and daughters Liji, Lincy and Leena. Two of his daughters, Liji and Lincy, have been married off. Shaji, who joined the Indian Air Force a few months ago, is in his training period.“The farmers in this paddy belt are having a harrowing time. The state government has to give Rs 90 crore and the Centre Rs 180 crore to the Supplyco to pay for the paddy procured from the farmers. Though the government had said that the price of paddy procured would be given in three weeks, many farmers are yet to receive the payment even after six weeks,” said Desiya Karshaka Samajam general secretary Muthalamthode Mani. He said the farmers were cash-strapped for the second crop of paddy. They were pledging their paddy receipt sheet issued by the Civil Supplies Corporation in co-operative banks and availing loans for sowing the second crop, he added.
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