Farmer suicides: Punjab bureaucrat to support families

MANSA: Inspired by actor Akshay Kumar's initiative to help relatives of martyrs from the armed forces, an IAS officer in Punjab has decided to launch a portal to provide relief to families of farmers who committed suicide due to debt.

Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Sanyam Aggarwal, posted in Mansa district, said the web portal will have details of such families and people can then make contributions to support them.

The 2012-batch officer said he was inspired by Kumar, who in consultation with the Union home ministry, launched the website www.bharatkeveer.gov.in last month.

He said he will study its model to work out the payment gateway.

More than 400 farmer suicides have been reported from the district since July, 2015, he said.

Aggarwal said he would launch the portal wherein the details of tragedy-hit families will be uploaded and monetary donations can be extended.

A committee comprising financial experts and psychiatrists will be set up in the district to interact with farmers and their families to help them get out of stress, he said.

The district agriculture department has procured details of all suicide-hit families and the administration will look to offer free modern education to the eligible family members, he said.