Khallikote: The sarpanch of Badapalli panchayat under Khallikote block in Ganjam district has resorted to begging in nearby villages to make ends meet.
Hema Naik, the septuagenarian woman, won the panchayat election without contest nearly five years ago. She has been living a miserable life, despite being the sarpanch.
A source said that Hema is uneducated and illiterate. She was the only woman belonging to Scheduled Caste category and confirming the reservation norms of the state government.
Hema moves door to door every day seeking alms. The elderly woman’s plights surfaced after a video of her begging went viral.
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Interestingly, Hema was seen sharing the dais a few days ago with MLA Suryamani Baidya at an event where ‘smart health card’ was distributed among beneficiaries under Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana.
Hema attends the panchayat office on special occasions alone. Otherwise, she keeps begging most of the days. When asked about her day-to-day official works, she remained silent and smiled.
On the other hand, some villagers alleged that there are some people who take advantage of Hema’s ignorance about official works.
“Despite being the sarpanch, she knows nothing about how things are going on. Many of the state government officials are misappropriating the money meant for panchayat’s development,” a local said.
On being contacted, Khallikote block development officer Mitali Patra said, “Allegation of Badapalli sarpanch begging is baseless. She is not educated to handle official works of the panchayat. Hence, she always depends on husband and sons to do the works on her behalf.”
PNN
