Farmers stage sit-in protest over rejection of drought relief
Farmers in Thoothukudi staged a protest after the district administration rejected their request to declare the area drought-affected. While officials cited statistical data as the reason for the rejection, farmers demanded compensation and relief for crop losses and flood damage.
Why it matters
The conflict highlights the tension between government administrative criteria and the lived economic realities of farmers facing climate-related distress.
Farmers on Thursday staged a sit-in protest at the grievance redressal meeting at the Collectorate here after their demands for declaration of five blocks in the district as drought-affected areas and compensation were rejected.
A farmers group led by K. Premkumar of Villiseri staged the protest as their demand for drought relief over the past six months was rejected by officials.
Collector Vishu Mahajan said the district administration had conducted a detailed study based on factors such as average rainfall, actual rainfall received during the previous year, crop yield data and other guidelines for identifying drought-hit areas. The statistical data available for Thoothukudi district did not meet the prescribed criteria for declaring the areas drought-affected. Hence, the district administration could not recommend the proposal to the State government.
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