Brown planthopper infestation in Odisha drives farmer to suicide: Family

The farmer’s family said he had taken two loans to finance the paddy crop and could not bear the loss due to the insect infestation

Published on: Nov 15, 2023, 21:19:57 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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Bhubaneswar: A 50-year-old farmer in western Odisha’s Bolangir has died by suicide after a brown planthopper infestation destroyed large parts of his paddy crop, people aware of the matter said on Wednesday.

The farmer’s brother told reporters that he died by suicide when the pesticide didn’t work (REUTERS FILE PHOTO)

The farmer, who lived in Bolangir’s Puintala block, had grown paddy on 12 acres and borrowed from cooperative and private banks. “He bought pesticide from the local market after finding the brown planthopper insects in the field. But the pesticide didn’t prove to be effective,” his brother said.

He added that the family reached out to state agriculture officials for help but did not get any. “My brother was already stressed about the loan and when he found out that there would be almost no harvest this season, he killed himself,” the farmer’s brother said.

He was admitted to Bhima Bhoi Medical College and Hospital on Tuesday and was being treated for Local Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Mukesh Mahaling alleged that though more than 300 hectares of paddy field in the district have been affected by the insects, the agriculture department has not taken any steps.

There are reports of brown planthopper attacks in the Ganjam, Balasore and Keonjhar districts too.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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