Three chilli farmers, who suffered huge losses due to spurious seed, attempted suicide by consuming pesticide in front of the Nunna police station here on Wednesday.
They were rushed to the Government General Hospital (GGH) and the condition of one of them is stated to be critical.
The three were identified as Vadderapu Tirupati Rao, Banala Purnaiah and Gogonu Ramaiah, of Arugolu village, Gampalagudem mandal in Krishna district.
According to sources, 216 farmers sowed chilli crop in 350 acres in Gampalagudem mandal in 2015. However, the seed did not germinate and the crop was damaged. Following a complaint, the Agriculture Department officials visited the village and confirmed that the seeds were spurious.
The officials submitted a report to the district administration, and then Collector directed the two companies, which supplied the seed, to pay compensation to the farmers.
However, the company owners approached the High Court and the case was reportedly struck off. The government did not file an appeal. The farmers staged protests several times in the mandal headquarters and in Vijayawada, seeking justice.
Chalo Assembly foiled
On Wednesday, the AP Koulu Rythu Sangham called for ‘Chalo Assembly’ over the problem and about 70 chilli farmers participated in the protest.
The Sathyanarayanapuram police intercepted the farmers, took them into custody and shifted them to the Nunna police station, where the three allegedly consumed pesticide and fell unconscious. They were undergoing treatment in the GGH.
Nunna Circle Inspector Sahera claimed that the three farmers were not taken into custody.
Leaders of the YSR Congress, the CPI(M), the Congress party, the AP Koulu Rythu Sangham and other organisations visited the hospital and enquired about the health condition of the farmers.
They demanded the government pay compensation to all the chilli farmers, who suffered losses due to spurious seed in Gampalagudem mandal.
