Tensed situation prevailed for some time at the Kumbakonam Revenue Divisional-level agriculture grievance meeting on Thursday as RDO Poornima, who chaired the meeting, preferred to leave the meeting hall for some time as the farmers raised the issue of ₹300 crore bank loan scam affecting sugarcane cultivators attached to a private sugar mill at Thirumandankudi.
Inquiries reveal that as soon as the grievance meeting began the affected farmers besieged the podium from where the RDO was chairing the meeting and raised slogans demanding justice for the affected sugarcane cultivators.
Referring to the assurances given by the present government at the time of the Legislative Assembly elections, they urged Chief Minister M. K. Stalin to come to their rescue and save them from penury. They had also demanded that the private mill be taken over by the State government in order to save the interest of farmers who have been beguiled by the private management.
Regretting that their agitation demanding action against the private mill management remain unheeded while other agitations targetting the State government have evoked the government machinery’s prompt positive response, they insisted the RDO to give an assurance in writing on behalf of the State government. As the farmers continued to press their demand, the RDO preferred to leave the meeting hall for a brief period of time.
Later, the meeting went on with farmers raising other issues concerning the farming activities in the…
