Nuagaon: A farmer reportedly died after he inhaled toxic chemical fumes while spraying pesticides on his farm at Kilupada village under K. Nuagaon block in Kandhamal district Saturday morning.
As per sources, the deceased, Gobardhan Mallick, 35, owned three acres of agricultural land which became marshy due to incessant rains. Besides, the paddy that he had cultivated became infested with insects. So he sprayed pesticides, reportedly provided by the Agriculture Department, to kill the insects.
However, he fell unconscious while spraying the pesticides in his farm. Family members rescued him and rushed him to Baliguda sub-divisional hospital after his condition worsened. But he breathed his last while undergoing treatment Saturday morning, family members said.
While his father lodged a complaint in this regard with Baliguda police station, the police have registered a case of unnatural death and handed over the body to the bereaved family after post-mortem.
When contacted, K. Nuagaon District Agriculture Officer Achutya Nanda Nahak said he had visited Gobardhan’s land with panchayat agricultural officer Rameswar.
“There is no paddy affected by insects; so there is no chance of his dying due to inhaling of poisonous pesticides.” However, family members maintained that it was the low quality pesticides that claimed his life and demanded a probe and strict action against officials who had provided the pesticides.
PNN