The ravaged farmers of Guntur staged a dharna on the National Highway, lamenting the losses they had incurred (which is estimated at Rs. 20 crores) due to the fire accident at a cold storage facility.
Sai Surya Cold Storage Facility had erupted in flames at 3am this morning, destroying the red chilli crops of numerous hapless farmers. The fire accident has been attributed to a short circuit at the facility. This comes as a huge blow to the farmers, as a quintal of red chilli is priced between Rs. 9,000 and Rs. 10,000 at present.
The affected farmers have taken to the streets, demanding that the government provide them with compensation packages according to the current market rates. The police had resorted to a lathi charge to control the angry ryots.
This is the 2nd time that a cold storage facility fell victim to a fire accident. Nandini storage facility, also situated in Guntur, had erupted in flames a week ago.
District In-Charge Collector Sarath had rushed to the Sai Surya facility as soon as he was informed about the incident, and he stated that the Sai Surya authorities would have to pay the compensation to the farmers. He said that action would be taken against the company in the event that they do not pay up.
Ministers from the revenue department have also declared that they would work towards ensuring that the farmers get their compensation packages, following which the peasants simmered down.