Telkoi: Even as government prioritises rural development, tribal people continue to lack basic facilities in remote pockets.
A case in point is the condition of three Juanga families at Jamudalak Sahi under Oria panchayat, just 3 km away from the Telkoi panchayat office. The Three families have been leading a life of neglect and deprivation, thanks to the callous attitude of officials.
Plagued by host of problems like lack of road connectivity, drinking water, education and healthcare, the families are struggling to survive. Welfare schemes launched by the government have not yet reached the Juangas, who still seek shelter under thatched houses made of mud and bamboo sticks. The huts do not even have doors.
Widow Paluni Juanga and her neighbours Manguti Juanga and Sukru Juanga live a life of deprivation, receiving no help from the administration. They have tried to bring their plight to the notice of the sarpanch and panchayat representatives, but no one pays them any heed.
Even after repeated pleas, they are not provided a house under the government’s Indira Awas Yojana housing scheme. Members of the three families said they were deprived of all the government benefits because they could not pay bribes to officials for a house. “We would be grateful if the administration takes notice of our plight and provide us with pucca houses under a government scheme,” the family members said.
The families fear that snakes and wild animals might stray into their homes because the huts do not have doors. Moreover, the bone-chilling cold plagues them, with cold winds blowing into their homes.
They are forced to light fires in their houses to keep warm through the night. The Juangas cannot afford to construct houses for themselves. The members of the three families work as labourers. They do not own land and depend on forest produce. PNN
