Farmer killed by a land tiller

Farmer killed by a land tiller

Mangalore Today News Network

Mudipu, Dec 3, 2011 : John Paul D’Souza, a 47-year-old farmer, was killed when he slipped and fell under a land tiller while tilling his field at Kottarikudru in Harekala on Friday.

The farmer had just purchased the land tiller. When he was tilling his field Friday, the wheel got stuck and refused to move. He tried lifting the machine, but lost balance, slipped, and fell under the wheels of the machine. Although his wife tried to rescue him, she could not. People rushed to the scene when they heard the screams, pulled Mr. D’Souza out, and rushed him to the hospital. However, he could not be saved.

Kottarikudru does not have even the basic facilities. Four families live in Kottarikudru and they need a boat to get home. The farmer struggled for nearly 3 years and nobody could reach him on time. If there were better facilities, he could have been rescued easily, said the local people. The four families earn their livelihood through agriculture.

His wife Sunitha said that she had urged him not to purchase the tiller, but the farmer had borrowed a loan to purchase one and was confident that he could repay the loan after selling the vegetables.