By IANS
Yavatmal (Maharashtra) : President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Friday met the widows of some of the farmers who had committed suicide in Vidarbha region due to mounting debts and asked them not to lose heart.
Giving a patient hearing to a delegation of the widows, some of whom were crying while narrating their plight, the president promised to talk to the officers concerned regarding their problems.
Kalam, who is demitting office next month, closely read the memorandum presented by the widows and sought clarifications on some points and promised to do the needful.
Visibly perturbed on hearing that the prime minister's relief package and the one given by the state government had brought them little benefit, Kalam asked his officers why that was so.
Relief commissioner S.K. Goyal, who accompanied the president, clarified that the widows had received a compensation of Rs.100,000 each and the farmers had got the benefits like 100 days wages and Below Poverty Line (BPL) cards as per the criteria set by the government.
As many as 1,186 debt-ridden farmers committed suicide in Vidarbha last year alone, the Yavatmal district accounting for most of them. The toll this year so far is 435.
Addressing students of Amolakchand Mahavidyalaya in the city later, Kalam called for a partnership between cotton growers, agricultural scientists and textile industry to ensure better returns to the farmers.
"Incorporation of farmers in agro-processing industry must become the axiom of the second green revolution if it has to bring fair returns to the primary producer," he said.
The president also visited the 'prernasthal' memorial of late freedom fighter Jawaharlal Darda, father of Rajya Sabha member and chairman of Lokmat group of newspapers Vijay Darda.
He paid a visit to the Sewagram Ashram of the apostle of peace Mahatma Gandhi in Wardha district and the Pavnar Ashram of Bhoodan movement exponent Vinoba Bhave nearby.
Kalam also interacted with students of the World Hindi University and the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences in Sewagram.