According to the father, two lives in Hazaribagh are worth only Rs 10,000.

“What is the price of two human lives?” ” In Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh, farmer Mithilesh Mehta questioned at his home beside a highway. Rekha Devi, his wife, sat beside him on the floor and sobbed as she looked at a photograph of her daughter. “It’s Rs 10,000,” Mehta said, searching through monthly invoices from Mahindra Finance, which had loaned him money to buy a tractor.

On September 15, Monika Kumari, Mehta’s eldest daughter, was mowed down twice by the company’s recovery agents while attempting to prevent them from seizing her father’s tractor. Monika, 22, was two months pregnant at the time. She passed away on the same day.

The tragedy has cast a sharp light on the employment of recovery agents by loan companies, prompting top Mahindra executives to discuss a review of the practice.

According to Pankaj Roy, president of Jharkhand Kisan Mahasabha, banks are becoming more conservative in lending to farmers due to a lack of recoveries. He claims this has created an opportunity for private financiers to jump in. “They charge hefty interest rates, but these loans are processed promptly.” Farmers have suffered the brunt of the Covid-19 economic problems. “They don’t have a choice,” Roy explained.

There has been a human tragedy. We will investigate this event thoroughly and look at the practice of using third-party collecting companies that have been in place.” In a statement, Anish Shah, MD and CEO of Mahindra Group, said, “We are very grieved and troubled by the Hazaribagh incident.”