Releasing a list of 40 farmers who committed suicide, Samiti leader Kishor Tiwari demanded that the State Government should announce a special economic relief package for cotton-growers of Vidarbha region. He said standing crops over 50 lakh hectare were destroyed by unseasonal rains and hail storm causing unprecedented loss.

He demanded that the State Government should waive interest on crop loan and offer fresh loan to help farmers before the oncoming kharif season. If the State fails to release special economic package, then the Samiti would launch agitation from June 7, he said in a press release.

Stating that the farmers committing suicides are victims of government apathy, he said time should not be wasted in releasing a special package.

The Samiti at a farmers convention held atPandharkawada in Yavatmal district had raised the demand for a special package, The Samiti has now set June 7 as the deadline and said an agitation would be launched if the package is not announced by then.

Among the 40 farmers who committed suicide, 19 are from Amravati, 12 from Yavatmal, four from Bhandara, three from Nagpur and two from Wardha.

Meanwhile, a former official of the state Cotton Marketing Federation has demanded that the monopoly cotton purchase scheme be scrapped and open market purchase systems should be started with immediate effect.