On Wednesday the cavalcade of UP minister Jai Kumar Singh, who visited the district to inaugurate a 'Gaushala' (cow shelter) ruined the poor farmer's crops. Scores of SUV's, one of which had the minister, trampled almost the entire field of the farmer to reach the venue of the function as there was no other way. Image Courtesy: ANI/Twitter
A Dalit farmer was left distraught after the motorcade of an Uttar Pradesh minister mowed down the standing mustard crops in his field on Wednesday.
Devendra Dohre, a marginal from Jalaun district, found a fleet of SUVs trampling through the crops as minister Jai Kumar Singh and his entourage found a shorter route to the venue of a function via his field. Singh was on his way to inaugurate a ‘gaushala’ (cow shelter) in the district.
Dohre had struggled to sow the mustard crops as he borrowed money from a local money lender and irrigated the crop regularly with the hope of making good returns.
A shocked Dohre could only stand in despair as he saw his crop being ruined by the moving vehicles.
The distraught farmer managed to locate the minister and lay prostrate before him seeking help. However, the minister simply brushed him aside and continued with the programme.
A little later, Singh called the farmer after the pictures showing Devendra at his feet went public and gave him Rs 4,000 as compensation for the crop damage.
“My government is sensitive toward the farmers...we are committed to their betterment,” the minister told reporters.
But the farmer was crestfallen.
“It's pittance...I had taken a loan to buy the seed and irrigate the field...one hour of irrigation costs Rs 200… almost half of my crop is ruined completely,” Devendra said.
He said the organisers of the function should have ensured a proper approach road to the venue.
“How can someone drive vehicles through the fields with standing crops,” he sought to know.