Amitabh Bachchan pays farmers` debt

Wardha: Superstar Amitabh Bachchan came to the rescue of 90 farmers in Maharashtra`s Wardha district as they were Saturday given cheques to repay their debt.

Cheques would be delivered at the homes of 24 other needy farmers. The farmers were selected from over 20 villages of the district by members of the Rotary Club of Gandhi City Wardha and Rotary Club of Mumbai. The cheques total around Rs.30 lakh, all of which was donated by Bachchan. "When Bachchan expressed his willingness to contribute to the cause of farmers, we scrutinised the debt amount of farmers in these villages and sent a list of over 300 farmers to him," member and past president of Rotary Club of Gandhi City Wardha Mahesh Makolkar told reporters. He said that after the list was sent to Bachchan, representatives from his side visited these villages and verified the information. They also narrowed down the list to 114, he said. "Around 90 farmers were handed over the cheques at a ceremony here Saturday. We have arranged to deliver the cheques of those farmers who were unable to attend the ceremony," Makolkar said. There are over 900 villages in the district, out of which farmers of 22 villages were selected for the monetary help. IANS