Farmer, labourer kill themselves

Bathinda: An indebted farmer and a farm labourer ended their lives on Sunday night in Bathinda district. Farmer Bablu Singh, 35, of Mansa Kalan village, had two acre land and owed Rs 2 lakh to the village cooperative society. "He was under depression for not saving enough to repay the instalment and ended life by gulping a poisonous substance," said farmer organisation BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) district president Shingara Singh. Farm labourer Nirmal Singh, 28, Rampura village, owed Rs 70,000 to a moneylender. His wife Charanjit Kaur said Nirmal was under depression and committed suicide by hanging from a ceiling fan at home on Sunday night while others slept.