Agro foods firm dupes farmers of Rs 42 lakh

Coimbatore: Around 10 farmers from various parts of the state petitioned city police commissioner S Davidson Devasirvatham on Monday, seeking action against an Annur-based agro foods firm for scamming and cheating them of lakhs of rupees.
They said Jaya Bharathi Agro Foods was yet to pay them for the agricultural produce that it had bought from them last year.According to the farmers, the firm owes them a combined Rs 42 lakh.
The farmers from Neyveli, Salem, Theni and Dharmapuri districts said the firm had approached them through Nithra Tamil Vivasayam App.
Govindasamy, 33, a pearl millet farmer from Neyveli, said the app was a common platform for the farmers to post about availability of their produce. “Say, if a farmer posts about the availability of two or five tonnes of millet or vegetables, the firm used to call and tell the person to procure more and give it 10 tonnes to 20 tonnes, by promising cash and transportation cost.” Govindasamy said he had supplied 20 tonnes of pearl millet to the firm.
However, when the farmers brought their produce to the firm at Annur, they were paid only 5% advance. The firm used to send away trucks after unloading the goods and the farmers were made to pay for the transportation.
“They then used to make us wait still next day, saying the owner was stuck somewhere else on business and would be back. Since we had sent the truck away, we didn’t have an option to take back the goods,” said 30-year-old Damodaran, another millet farmer from Theni. “The firm now owes me Rs 4.2 lakh for the millet I supplied on September 19 last year. I had also complained to the Annur police about it.”
According to the farmers, the firm used to have 15 telemarketers when they unload their produce and sport almost an empty office with just a receptionist when they visit the firm again for payment. “We just want our money, because we procured the excess stock from other farmers, mainly relatives and neighbours, who are now demanding their money. We need to pay them,” Govindasamy said.
The farmers said 15 of them had signed the complaint.
Jayabharathi Agro Foods could not be reached for a comment. Its website was taken down and phones were switched off.