Hazaribagh death: 2 lives valued at just Rs 10,000, says father | India News,The Indian Express
Monika Kumari, Mehta’s eldest daughter, was mowed down twice by the company’s recovery agents on September 15 as she tried to stop them from seizing her father’s tractor. Monika, 22, was two months pregnant. She died the same day.
Monday, Sep 19, 2022
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HomeIndiaHazaribagh death: 2 lives valued at just Rs 10,000, says father
Hazaribagh death: 2 lives valued at just Rs 10,000, says father
Monika Kumari, Mehta’s eldest daughter, was mowed down twice by the company’s recovery agents on September 15 as she tried to stop them from seizing her father’s tractor. Monika, 22, was two months pregnant. She died the same day.
Written by Abhishek Angad
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Hazaribagh | Updated: September 19, 2022 3:04:02 pm
Mithilesh Mehta, the father of the pregnant woman who died. Photo: Abhishek Angad“What’s the cost of two human lives?” asked farmer Mithilesh Mehta at his home near a highway in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh. His wife, Rekha Devi, sat beside him on the floor and broke down, looking at a photograph of her daughter. “It is Rs 10,000,” continued Mehta, rummaging through monthly receipts of payments to Mahindra Finance, which had loaned him money to buy a tractor.
Monika Kumari, Mehta’s eldest daughter, was mowed down twice by the company’s recovery agents on September 15 as she tried to stop them from seizing her father’s tractor. Monika, 22, was two months pregnant. She died the same day.
The death has shone a harsh light on the use of recovery agents by finance companies, even forcing top executives at Mahindra to talk about a review of the practice.
According to Jharkhand Kisan Mahasabha working president Pankaj Roy, banks are becoming increasingly conservative in giving loans to farmers owing to lack of recoveries. This, he said, has opened a door for private financiers to step in. “They charge high interest rates, but process these loans quickly. During the Covid-19 economic woes, the farmers have borne the brunt. They don’t have a choice,” said Roy.
Roy said recovery agents are “generally aggressive” and that he has received “a few panicked calls from farmers” over the last few years. “In the Hazaribagh case, my assumption is that recovery agents, who are generally third parties, intended to seize the vehicle which would fetch them a higher penalty from the farmers. If a farmer doesn’t pay, they may auction the tractor, fetching more money,” he said.
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