Madhya Pradesh: Chhatarpur farmer told to prove he is alive

BHOPAL: A poor farmer of Chhatarpur district is running from pillar to post to prove he is alive. He alleged that a patwari doctored documents and declared him dead in revenue records.
As soon as the farmer got to know about his ' death' he rushed to the government office, trying to convince officers he was very much alive. Rameshwer Patel, a marginal farmer, alleged that patwari Vishnu Soni, tampered with government record because he had an old enmity with him.Rameshwer, a resident of Bahadurpur village, owns a small piece of land.
"Some one in the village informed me the patwari fudged records and my land was transferred in the name of some persons of Ghasipur village, a hamlet near his village," he said.
"I came to know about this a week ago and as soon as I was informed I rushed to the tehsil office in Gaurihar," he said.
"After a few days of struggle when I managed to meet concerned clerk, he refused to believe me," Rameshwer said. Later, when he was able to meet the tehsildar, the officer said he would help him, he said.
A revenue officer said, "At the moment, Patel's case is stuck in government files. He would really find it difficult to get the work done and would need help of senior officials."
District collector Ramesh Bhandari said he had learnt about the incident and already asked officials to look into the matter.
" If it is a genuine case, the farmer would get back his land and those responsible for this would be punished."