NASHIK: The farmers affected due to power transmission lines of Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) have gone on a hunger strike demanding scrapping of these lines over their farms.
"You may raise the tower and move out. But what happens if it collapses on farm labourers. Who will be responsible for loss of life?" asked
Santosh Prukar, who is spearheading the agitation.
The farmers do not want the compensation. They just want the company to re-draw the transmission line from areas others than Dindori taluka. "We are grape farmers and use iron angles to raise the creepers. The overhead wire falling down and touching the angles or the towers coming carshing down on any of the grape farms would only mean catastrophe for the farmers," another farmer
Nilesh Katore said.
MLA Narhari Zhirwal, president of Kadwa Cooperative Sugar Factory, Sreeram
Shete and others demanded that the farmers in the radius of the tower also should be given the compensation for the loss of crop due to collapse of these towers on their fields. "The PGCIL should buy the land from the farmers to avoid such mishaps. First demand would be to scrap the line, but if that is not possible the farmers should be paid compensation for the land," Shete said.
Uday Kisve, sub-divisional officer, Dindori, took the message to the district collector
Radhakrishnan B who has arranged for the meeting on Wednesday to discuss the issue and come out with the solution. "We are not going to relent unless the divisional revenue commissioner visits us and sees for himself the conditions here," Katore said adding that the agitation would continue till then.
The local PGCIL officials said they have raised the issue with their seniors and will meet the collector on Wednesday.