Three Farmers Committed Suicide in West Bengal After Crop Damage Due to Cyclone Jawad

Three farmers were found dead over the last two days in West Bengal's rice cultivating district Purba Bardhaman, police reported on Sunday. According to the deceased farmers' family, they committed suicide after Cyclone Jawad destroyed their potato and paddy plantings. 

Meanwhile, the incident is being investigated by the district administration. Two farmers were discovered hanging in their homes in the Raina I block villages of Debipur and Bantir on Saturday. Another farmer was discovered hanging in his home in Biruha village, Kalna II block, on Friday. 

According to a police officer, the bodies were taken to Bardhaman Medical College and Hospital for a post-mortem investigation. According to District Magistrate Priyanka Singla, the incidents are being investigated. 

According to Raina I block BDO Soumen Banik, a preliminary investigation revealed that the suicides were not the consequence of crop loss. The police and agriculture departments have been tasked with conducting additional investigations into the incidents. 

Crop failure, according to Pradip Mazumdar, the West Bengal government's agriculture advisor, would not have been the cause of the farmers' suicide.

Mazumdar further stated that the farmers received money from the 'Krishak Bandhu' scheme a week ago. 

Shampa Dhara, MLA of Raina also claimed that the deaths were not the result of crop failure. Police are conducting additional investigations to determine the exact cause of death. 

The leads gathered during the investigation will help the authorities in finding out if the suicide was prompted by reasons other than the financial crisis. 

Over 5 million hectares of agricultural area was affected due to heavy rains during 2021. Eight lakh hectares of agriculture and horticulture crops had to sustain serious damages as heavy rain and floods continue wreck several districts of Andhra Pradesh.  

Excessive rainfall caused crop damage all over India. Significantly, the farmers in South Gujarat are in severe distress after incessant rain flooded their farmlands. Not just that, over 20-25% of the crop might be lost due to flooding. As a result, cultivators in the state are asking the government for financial aid to tide over the crisis.