Agreeing with the suggestions made by an activist that credit assistance can be issued to farmers in Thanjavur, Nagapattinam and Thiruvarur districts whose paddy cultivation failed in 2003, the Madras High Court has directed the State government to look into how best problems of farmers can be reduced.
Raising the issue of suicides and starvation deaths of farmers in Nagapattinam, Thanjavur and Thiruvarur districts in 2003, activist ‘Elephant’ G. Rajendran in his PIL sought for a direction to officials to pay at least Rs. 20 lakh to the family which lost its member and a government job to one of the family members .
He further sought at least Rs. 25,000 per acre to affected farmers, irrespective of whether they were poor or rich. Further the government should distribute rice free of cost at 300 gram per head per day to all affected farmers in Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur and Thanjavur districts.
“We are in complete agreement with what the petitioner pleads, but the matter being one in the administrative domain, we expect the State government to take necessary steps in this direction,” the First Bench comprising Chief Justice S.K. Kaul and Justice T.S. Sivagnanam said in a recent order.
While it was open to the petitioner to make his suggestions, the State government can examine them with the assistance of experts , they said.
Perusing the counter affidavit filed by the State government, which showed that it was “quite conscious of the problem though there can always be scope for improvement,” the Bench closed the petition with the “desirous hope” that the action taken by the government would obliterate the possibilities of such tragedies in the future.
