Masauli, Barabanki: A 55-year-old farmer died after being crushed under a tractor trolley at a cold storage facility in Barabanki on Tuesday evening, allegedly due to mismanagement and lack of proper arrangements at the premises. The tractor driver fled the spot after the accident, leaving the vehicle behind, triggering panic among farmers present there. According to reports, Umesh Chandra Verma, a resident of Piprauli village under Jahangirabad police station area, had arrived at Bindra Cold Storage in the Kotwali area around 4 p.m. to store his potatoes. Due to poor management at the cold storage, tractor trolleys were parked haphazardly across the premises. While a tractor trolley was being reversed, Verma reportedly came under it and sustained fatal injuries. Farmers present at the site rushed him to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead. On receiving information, Kotwali police reached the spot, prepared the inquest report and sent the body for post-mortem examination.
Violation of Rules, Chaos at Facility
Farmers alleged that although the district administration had introduced a token system for smooth entry and storage of potatoes, the cold storage management was not issuing tokens. This has led to heavy rush and disorder, with tractor trolleys crowding the premises.
They also claimed that the management had not even arranged a gatekeeper at the entrance, resulting in vehicles being parked randomly inside the facility. Farmers further alleged that while cold storage owners had recently united to increase storage charges, they showed little interest in improving basic arrangements.
Family in Deep Distress
The incident has left the victim’s family in severe distress. Verma had already lost his only son, Ravi, in a road accident near Nayagaon four years ago. He was the sole earning member of the family and was responsible for the marriage of his daughter and two granddaughters.
Dr. Rajesh Kumar Verma, president of the Mentha Farmers’ Committee, expressed grief over the incident and demanded a fair investigation and immediate financial assistance for the bereaved family. He also urged the administration to take strict action against mismanagement at cold storage facilities to prevent such incidents in the future.
Report: Noor Mohammad masauli Barabanki
