Telangana: Rats Chew Farmer's Rs 2 Lakh Saved For His Surgery; Minister Assures Financial Aid

The minister said the farmer need not be depressed over either the loss of money or his illness as all required help will be rendered to him

Telangana Minister for Tribal, Women & Child Welfare Satyavathi Rathod. (Image: IANS)

Hyderabad: In a shocking turn of events, rats chumbled Rs 2 lakh cash that was saved by a farmer — Redya Naik — for his abdominal surgery. Naik, who hails from a Vemunur village in Telangana's Mahabubnagar district, was shocked to see his savings churned into bits and pieces by the rats. The grief-stricken vegetable vendor rushed to a local bank — on his neighbour's suggestion — to exchange the Rs 2 lakh cash, bitten into pieces, but the bank officials denied budging for his request.

This incident grabbed the eyeballs of Telangana's Minister for Tribal, Women & Child welfare Satyavathi Rathod and on Sunday she assured farmer Redya Naik that she will arrange his surgery in whichever hospital he preferred and also render him financial assistance. She announced the help while reacting to the report about the tragic loss of the vegetable farmer. She deputed Mandal Revenue Officer to meet the farmer and console him.

The minister said the farmer need not be depressed over either the loss of money or his illness as all required help will be rendered to him. Redya Naik had kept the money for his abdominal surgery. He required Rs 4 lakh for the surgery to remove the lump from his abdomen. With some savings and also hand loans taken from relatives and friends, he had kept the cash in the almirah, which was shredded by the rodents.

As he wanted to deposit the money in the hospital on Tuesday, he opened the almirah but was shocked to find shredded currency notes which were in Rs 500 denomination. "When I opened the almirah and took out the bag, I was shocked as the entire cash was shredded," said Redya Naik, who grows vegetables and sells them on his two-wheeler.

He was depressed over losing the money and had lost hopes of undergoing the surgery. When the farmer's plight came to her notice, the minister hailing from the same district came forward to help him. The farmer thanked the minister for her gesture.