Bhubaneswar: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to Chief Secretary of Odisha seeking an action-taken report (ATR) on the issue of prevailing malnourishment cases in Nagada tribal village in Jajpur district.
The notice was served after a petition was filed by rights activist Akhand with the NHRC. The complaint was based on a report prepared by a fact-finding committee of civil society members which visited the remote tribal village and visualised the status of development work in the area.
The petitioner informed the NHRC that even after pumping in crores of rupees for the development of the village, which hogged national limelight after the infamous deaths of 22 malnourished kids in 2016, hardly any change has taken place there in the social and health fronts.
The NHRC has asked the Chief Secretary to review the matter and submit an ATR to the human rights watchdog within four weeks. Akhand had asked the NHRC for a review by the Chief Secretary, strict audit of the funds spent on the infrastructure works to weed out the chances of corruption and strict monitoring of the development work claimed in the village.
According to the detailed complaint sent by Akhand, despite tall claims of electricity connection to BPL families, the electrification works are in limbo. It also alleged that the Biju Bus Seva, an ambitious scheme to connect tribal villages with nearby urban areas, has come to a grinding halt after its operation just for a few days after its launch.
It also said that the only mode of communication for the Juang tribes living in the areas to get their ration quota from fair price shops is to hire taxis by paying hefty fares. The complaint to the NHRC also cited corruption allegations in road construction connecting Nagada and Kaliapani.
The petition also cited prevalent cases of malnourishment, unhealthy food habits and other social-economic rigidities despite spending crores of money in the village for four years.
