Junagarh: A pregnant woman was carried for six kilometers on a sling through thick forests to a local hospital for delivery, due to the lack of a concrete road in tribal Upardunda village under this block in Kalahandi district Monday.
Even though many incidents of patients, pregnant woman and children being carried on cots and slings, woman trekking through forests to fetch drinking water and students swimming across rivers to reach schools have been reported, nothing much has been done to construct roads in the state’s rural areas.
A case in point is Kalendri Majhi, wife of Suru Majhi. Her family alerted an 102 ambulance after Kalendri experienced labour pain. However, the vehicle got stuck six kilometers away from the village due to the lack of a proper road.
Her family had to hire some youths in the village to carry her on a sling to the ambulance from where she was taken to Junagarh community health centre. However, her condition worsened and she had to be shifted to Bhawanipatna-based district headquarters hospital where she delivered a girl.
“This is not the first incident of this kind. It is a daily affair for us even after 71 years of Independence,” the locals complained as they condemned the negligence of the administration. With around 400 families, the tribals here lead a life of deprivation and neglect with no basic facilities.
The residents depend on stream water for drinking purposes while oil lamps serve as source of light at nights. Even as locals have demanded for a concrete road to the village, but to no avail, thanks to the negligent attitude of the administration and the forest department. PNN
