
Blood on chilli fields
No Indian kitchen can do without chilies but the farmers who toil day in and day out in their fields to put it on your dining table are facing an unprecedented crisis.
In the country's red chilli capital, Guntur, the crisis is acquiring alarming proportions. As many as 20 chilli farmers have ended their lives since February this year and many more are teetering on the edge. This year seems to have been the worst for chilli farmers. Unusually heavy rains during the harvesting season caused them massive losses.
Soon after, a devastating fire destroyed the chilli market yard at Guntur, considered the Asia-Pacific region's biggest. During the peak season, daily transactions are estimated at Rs 40 crore here.
About 2.6 lakh bags of chillies valued at Rs 85 crore kept by farmers for sale were destroyed.
The fire destroyed the entire crops of hundreds of farmers who had survived the rain. A day after the fire, farmer P.V. Raghavaiah, 48, committed suicide. More farmers followed in taking the extreme step.
On Tuesday more than 400 farmers staged a Rasta Roko agitation in Guntur demanding full compensation for their destroyed crops.

Process goes manual at several locations

Manish Kumar first to take shot in Delhi

Concerns over Covaxin as some cite ‘lack of data’

Shielded and vaccinated: India begins mammoth immunisation drive

Nation receives a shot in the arm

Razdan furnishes details of hiring fraud

BMC begins mass inoculation as healthcare workers queue up for first vaccine jab
- All ten vaccination centres across the city sported colourful curtains and were decorated with flowers. Some centres at BYL Nair hospital and Covid-19 jumbo centre at Bandra Kurla Complex also placed selfie spots with ‘I got my Covid-19 vaccine’ message in the backdrop.

Farmer union seeks removal of 3 committee members alleging bias, appeals to SC
- In its response, BKU-Lokshakti through its advocate AP Singh told the Court that the Delhi Police application was unnecessary as Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code is already in place in central Delhi which restricts gathering of five or more persons.

Rahul, Jaishankar spar at panel meet

Over 3,000 personnel get Covid vaccine

India’s Covid-19 vaccination drive begins. All you need to know
- The health ministry on Saturday said that close to 200,000 people were vaccinated on Day 1 of the drive.

Mumbai records lowest temperature of the year, inhales cleanest air
- The Santacruz station of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) recorded a minimum temperature of 16.6 degrees Celsius, a degree below normal. This is the second lowest minimum temperature recorded this season following a mercury drop to 16 degrees Celsius on December 22 last year.

List of prominent people who also got vaccinated today

Covishield: A timeline of the Covid-19 vaccine manufactured by SII

Bribe-for-relief scam: CBI suspends 2 officers, recommends action against 2 more
- The DoPT is the nodal ministry for the CBI and any administrative action against Class-I gazetted officers (DSPs) is approved by it while the CBI Director has powers to suspend Inspectors and below rank officers.