Dasamantapur: Upset over administrative apathy the residents of Dokribeda village of Girligumma panchayat in this block in Koraput district Sunday built an approach road to their locality from the main road which was constructed by the Rural Development (RD) department.
Reports said the village is located four km from the RD road. Though there are only 400 voters in the village, the people of at least seven other villages including Dengaguda, Kaliamba and Kaskata also use the road.
Though the villagers had urged the block and district administrations on several occasions to lay a road, their requests fell on deaf ears, said a resident. Even 70 years after Independence, the people of these villages don’t know what ambulance services are, said another villager.
On the other hand, a four-wheeler is kept ready at a nearby weekly market to transport critical patients to hospital. A patient has to wait till the weekly market date to get healthcare services. The patient is taken on a cot to the vehicle kept at the market. Many patients succumb waiting for the market date, it is learnt.
In a fresh bid to get road connectivity villagers went to the Collectorate January 22 to inform officials of their plight but it didn’t give any result.
Left with no option, the residents cut the hills on both sides of the road and laid a wide road. Political leaders and the administration have been ignoring the area, the villagers said.
They added that they would boycott the general elections in 2019 if the village is not connected to the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, threatened Pradip Muduli, Bulu Takri, Gulu Kandhapan and others. Block Development Officer Sukanta Majhi said he would make arrangements for laying a pucca road soon. PNN
