Vitthal Nivrutti Pujari, a marginal farmer from Gangapur village, 13 km from Latur city, in Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh’s constituency, had pleaded with Latur sugar mills to crush his cane that were wilting in the summer heat. None of the mills, including the three controlled by Deshmukh, responded. A dejected Pujari hung himself on March 20. Almost two months have passed since the farmer died, his cane is yet to be lifted. The reason for this is excess cane harvested this year.

District Collector Rajiv Mittal said that eight farmers had committed suicide in the last one year. “However, only four cases were eligible for Government aid as these farmers were burdened by loans.

The recent two cases of Vitthal Pujari and Nagnath Aradwad are not related to excess cane problem,” he said.

Nagnath Shrirang Aradwad (30) had invested in the 10-acre cane cultivation and was under tremendous pressure to repay the loans he had taken from various cooperative credit societies. He ended his life on March 27.

A few kilometers away from Pujari’s village, 63 sugar farmers from Vanjarwadi (Ahmedpur taluka) are perturbed that the Balaghat Sugar Mill run by Indo Sugar, a private firm owned by the Chief Minister’s son is not lifting cane from fields spread across 200 hectares. They say that the Chief Minister and his son would be responsible if the farmers took “the extreme step”.

Amit Deshmukh, the Chief Minister’s son and Chairman of Vikas Cooperative Sugar Mill, however, says that millers cannot be blamed for this. “Eleven mills in 10 talukas of Latur district are crushing cane day and night. Crushing excessive cane is not profitable business for mills,” he said. When asked about the suicides, he said, “We have to go into the details and find out the real reasons. My father’s opponents are politicising the issue.”