With unseasonal summer showers wreaking havoc and taking away their only means of livelihood, farmers in Kerala are now looking forward to governmental assistance to stay afloat. The state cabinet is already in troubleshooting mode, and has decided to seek relief from the central government.According to Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, an all-party team from the state will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Delhi in a few days to seek relief. The delegation will be led by the Chief Minister, and he is expected to submit a memorandum calling for liberal relief to help farmers tide over the crisis.It is estimated that paddy crop worth Rs 393.33 crore perished due to unseasonal rains that lashed the state during the past few days. There has been two cases of farmer suicides following crop losses. The state cabinet, which met today, also decided to write-off farm loans of the two farmers who committed suicide and two others who died in rain-related incidents.
