Debt?ridden tribals want to end life

HUNDREDS OF tribals from four villages in Jhabua district have sought permission from Governor Dr Balram Jakhar to commit suicide, alleging that banks that provided loans for lift irrigation scheme in their villages are after their life for recovery, even though the scheme has failed due to faulty execution.

HUNDREDS OF tribals from four villages in Jhabua district have sought permission from Governor Dr Balram Jakhar to commit suicide, alleging that banks that provided loans for lift irrigation scheme in their villages are after their life for
recovery, even though the scheme has failed due to faulty execution.

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Addressing a press conference along with Samajwadi Party MLA Dr Sunilam, tribals from Garwada, Kunwarjhar, Bawdi and Piplipada villages of Jhabua district said that the administration, officials of Agriculture department, bank officials and contractors had lured them into participating in the scheme.

They had promised that their dry fields would get adequate water for irrigation throughout the year. Seventy five per cent of the fund required for the scheme was received as grants. But, technically faulty scheme failed to take off and their fields did not receive even a single drop of water through lift irrigation.

Charging massive corruption in execution of the scheme, they said that despite inability of the execution agencies to provide them benefits of the scheme, bank officials were after them to repay loan shown against their names.

Giving account of how many times they met officials, ministers and even the chief minister in the course of five years to restrain the banks from ‘harassing ’ them for recovery of loans, they said they are fed up with coercive tactics of the banks.