Farmers say they are waiting to get service connections long after sinking borewells

Farmers face delays in getting electricity connections, seek compensation for poor crop yield and protection of farmlands.

After having sunk borewells by obtaining loans from cooperative societies, one has to wait endlessly to get electricity connections, said farmers at the grievance redress meeting here on Friday.

Collector M.N. Poongodi presided over the meeting held at the Collectorate. The farmers said the borewells they had sunk could not be put to use in the absence of service connection to given by Tangedco. Several representations made to the Tangedco officials to facilitate the service connections were in vain. ‘Our applications are gathering dust for months together at the Tangedco offices,” said Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam district president N. Perumal. The Collector said she would form a committee comprising officials from the departments concerned and address their grievance without any more delay.

Saying their maize crop (makka cholam) gave a dismal yield, farmers of Reddiyarchathiram, Oddanchathiram and Thoppampatti and other places submitted petitions to the Collector seeking compensation. They said their maize fields were remaining fallow for the past six months.

A section of the farmers complained about wild boars invading their fields and destroying their crops and called for the Forest Department to issue orders to hunt them in line with the recent announcement in the State Assembly. The Collector said that it would be implemented once they received the relevant order.

Farmers from Natham, Sanarpatti and Palani areas said they were getting poor yield from mango orchards and said they were planning to switch over to other crops.

Another farmer said gale destroyed his plantain and coconut trees last month and sought compensation.

Farmers in Nilakottai block complained that water supplied through Periyar canal was minimal due to encroachment. Though several petitions were given to PWD and WRD offices, nothing had materialised to set things right. Moreover, the engineer was never available at his office.