In a deeply distressing incident that has once again highlighted the severe distress gripping Odisha’s farming community, a farmer from Jada Munda village in Komna block of Nuapada district has allegedly taken his own life.
The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has strongly condemned the tragedy and formed a high-level Fact-Finding Team to investigate the circumstances and press the state government for urgent relief.
The deceased farmer, identified as Nepal Majhi, is reported to have ended his life amid persistent problems in the paddy procurement system, including irregularities in registration and token distribution, delays in lifting paddy from mandis, and alleged failures in providing input subsidies.
BJD leaders have described these issues as direct consequences of the ruling “Double Engine” government’s shortcomings.BJD Vice President Sanjay Kumar Dasverma, while addressing the media, called the suicide a “naked example” of the government’s extreme failure towards farmers. “The dream of Minimum Support Price along with input subsidy has turned into a nightmare for Odisha’s farmers,” he stated.
In response to the tragedy, BJD President Naveen Patnaik has constituted a Fact-Finding Team headed by the party’s Deputy Leader in the Odisha Assembly, Prasanna Acharya. The team comprises former ministers Divya Shankar Mishra and Pushpendra Singh Deo, MLA Adhiraj Panigrahi, and Nuapada district BJD President Abani Joshi.
The committee has been directed to immediately visit the spot, meet the bereaved family of late Nepal Majhi, and hold discussions with the district administration and farmer organisations. As immediate relief, the BJD has demanded ₹20 lakh in financial assistance for the family along with a government job for one family member.
The party has also urged the government to immediately procure all pending paddy lying in mandis across western Odisha and extend the procurement period by an additional 15 days beyond the officially announced deadline.
Issuing a clear warning, Sanjay Kumar Dasverma said that if all demands are not fulfilled within seven days, the BJD will gherao the Nuapada District Collector’s office and make the administration non-functional.
The formation of the Fact-Finding Team and the strong ultimatum have intensified political pressure on the state government at a time when farmer distress in western Odisha remains a major concern.
