Daijiworld Media Network - Beltangady (SP)
Beltangady, May 28: Banjarumale in the taluk is located in a place that is hard to reach and away from modern facilities. The presence of people belonging to Malekudiya community is predominant here. Dakshina Kannada district deputy commissioner (DC) A B Ibrahim, who visited this place on Wednesday May 27 in tune with the promise he had made to the people of the village last year, and initiated process of setting up a polling booth in this village for the gram panchayat election.
People of Banjarumale were so far compelled to travel 25 km to reach the nearest polling booth to cast their votes. The people had created a platform in the village 32 years back in expectation of the arrival of the district deputy commissioner, and to receive him there. Their long wait bore fruits in 2014 when Ibrahim visited them on June 5 and promised to sort out their problem. He came to the village again on Wednesday to check for himself whether the promise he made has been met or not.
On his arrival, the DC was given a rousing reception by the locals. The community hall there had been decorated with banana trees and wild flowers. The polling booth number to the hall was got pasted to the entrance to the hall in the hands of a senior citizen from the village. The Malekudiya families offered oranges, pineapples, and other fruits grown by them to the DC in expression of their gratitude for his gesture.
Banjarumale happens to be the most inaccessible of villages falling under Neriya gram panchayat. No one from Banjarumale had been able to get BPL ration card till the DC visited the village last year. This time however, 15 families have got this card, and drinking water has been arranged at the community hall.
'The social welfare department has distributed nutritious food for six months for 38 families. But the department delivers this foodstuff at Kakkinje, which is 21 km away. We have to pay jeep hire charges of Rs 800 to bring them here. It would have been beneficial if the food items were delivered at our village,' said a gram panchayat former member, Krishna.
After Nirmiti Kendra built concrete road at a cost of Rs 30 lac for a small stretch of road leading to Kakkinje from Banjarumale that is in steep terrain, the road is no more slippery. Social welfare department officials said that in tune with past promise, an amount of Rs 2.83 lac has been disbursed to 19 people from the village for purchase of tailoring machines and stipend. However, when the officials said that no one had applied for house repair assistance, the Malekudiya families said 15 families had applied for this facility, but none of the applications have been sanctioned. The DC asked the officials to consider the applications and disburse money if found eligible.
The DC promised to provide facilities like solar lamps costing Rs 15 lac, construction of foot bridge at a cost of Rs 50 lac in stages under different schemes of the government, as the investment required is huge.
The locals said that disability pension has been sanctioned to two children here, and as per the DC's instructions given last year, medical officers have been visiting the village every month to conduct health check up. However, as the promise of increasing capacity of hydel power project near here has not been met, the village suffers from shortage of power.
Shekhar, head of Aborigines Rights taluk committee, Shekhar, and panchayat development officer, Ajit, were present.
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