An old farmer in Thanh Chuong sadly watched his pumpkin field, about to be harvested, being cut down to the roots.

At about 7:30 a.m. on August 31, Mr. Nguyen Van Binh (58 years old) in Chi Kim village, Thanh Chi commune, went to visit his family's pumpkin field at Da Han beach near Lam river bank and saw that the entire pumpkin field had its roots cut off, and the pumpkin leaves and tips had begun to wither.

Mr. Nguyen Van Binh's pumpkin garden has been cut off and is withering in the field. Photo: Huy Thu

Not only were the pumpkins cut at the roots, some rows of pumpkins and pumpkin plants were also cut into many pieces, many parts of the trellis were cut off, and some pumpkins were cut into many pieces and lying around in the field.

Mr. Binh said that immediately after discovering that his pumpkin field had been vandalized, he reported the incident to the Chi Kim hamlet command and Thanh Chi commune People's Committee. Upon receiving the information, this morning, Thanh Chi commune police and Thanh Chuong district police were present at Mr. Binh's pumpkin field to investigate the incident.

Most of the pumpkin plants in the garden were cut off at the base by the bad guys. Photo: Huy Thu

According to Mr. Binh, his family's pumpkin field is about 1 sao in area with 7 pumpkin beds (14 rows of pumpkin) planted by him and his wife 3 months ago at a cost of about 5 million VND. To make the pumpkin grow well, he and his wife invested a lot of time and effort.

Because the pumpkin field is far from the water source, every day the couple has to take turns carrying water from the local ponds to water the pumpkins. The pumpkin garden is green and fresh, with many fruits, and has already yielded its first harvest. On the morning of August 30, the couple cut the pumpkins to sell to traders and brought them to the market for 2.3 million VND.

Yesterday afternoon, both husband and wife went to take care of the pumpkins in the field and did not return until evening. His wife, Tran Thi Lai (58 years old), said: "Yesterday afternoon, I just carried 20 buckets of water to water the pumpkins. When I heard early this morning that the pumpkin fields were cut down to the roots, I felt heartbroken."

The first pumpkin harvest was destroyed. Photo: Huy Thu

It is known that Mr. Binh is a member of the Thanh Chi Commune Veterans Association. When the locality had a policy to implement a model of growing green squash, he and his wife responded positively. They thought the squash field would bring profit to the family, but unexpectedly, the roots were cut off and the squash withered in the field.

Present at Mr. Binh's pumpkin field, many people could not help but feel sad for the couple who had put in so much effort, but the pumpkins were destroyed by evil people when they were ready to harvest. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Binh (67 years old), a resident of Chi Kim hamlet, shared: Mr. Binh and his wife lived a peaceful life, worked hard, but when we heard that the pumpkin field was cut down to the roots and all withered, we also felt shocked, worried, and indignant. We do not know which heartless person destroyed Mr. Binh's pumpkin field.

Rows of squash with lots of fruit are wilting after the roots were cut. Photo: Huy Thu

It is known that, previously, this same field, Mr. Binh's family had been vandalized twice. Once, when planting soybeans and once, when planting cucumbers, the roots were cut off by the bad guys at night. In addition, the acacia trees in his family's forest were also burned when they were newly planted. Both times the bad guys had vandalized the field, he reported the incident to the local authorities, but the culprit was still not found.

Mr. Binh added: Since the pumpkin garden was cut down, the authorities have come to investigate, local leaders, representatives of departments and branches as well as villagers have come to encourage me, I am very touched. I earnestly request the authorities to clarify the case, so that my family and the people in the village can feel secure in doing business and production, without being stalked and sabotaged by bad guys.

Mr. Binh sat sadly next to the withering pumpkin field. Photo: Huy Thu

Ms. Tran Thi Truc - Chairman of Thanh Chi Commune People's Committee said: I am currently on a business trip to Thanh Hoa and have learned about the case of Mr. Nguyen Van Binh's pumpkin field in Chi Kim village being vandalized. I have directed the local police force to investigate vigorously, hoping to soon find the perpetrators of the vandalism, to handle them according to the provisions of the law.

On the afternoon of August 31, Thanh Chi commune contacted the buyer and mobilized local people to support Mr. Binh's family in harvesting and consuming the remaining squash in the field.