There is no proper approach road to Lingapuram, one of the three villages in ward no. 20, of Narsipatnam municipality. The ward has a total population of 2,000 of which 550 are tribals, living in Lingapuram village. This is the reason for the apathy of officials, allege Girijan Sangham leaders.
A bridge was constructed across Varaha River from Balighattam to reach Lingapuram, located on the other side of the river. However, after crossing the bridge, those going to Lingapuram have to travel on the kutcha road for about one-and-a-half kilometre. This is a proving to be a nightmare, especially during the monsoon for motorists.
During the monsoon, villagers of Lingapuram are forced to carry sick persons in ‘dholis’ as the inundated road is a risky ride for motorists, says K. Govinda Rao, Girijana Sangham 5thSchedule Sadhana Committee leader.
When the District Collector had held the ‘Spandana’ programme at Narsipatnam on October 11, 2021, the tribal people submitted representation to him seeking the construction of a road to their village. The Collector had handed over the representation to the Narsipatnam Municipal Commissioner directing him to take necessary action.
The Commissioner gave an endorsement on October 11, that as the municipality has no reserve money in the general funds for taking up construction of the road, the first priority would be given for construction of the road, when the government released funds, the next time. The cost for construction of the road was estimated at ₹21 lakh.
The Girijan Sangham leaders said that the 14thFinance Commission funds to the tune of ₹3 crore was released to the municipality for undertaking development works. But, the municipal authorities failed to allocate funds for construction of the road.
The tribal people staged a protest demanding a discussion on the issue during the municipal council meeting held on Monday.
In the past, the tribal people of Lingapuram used to get 10 days of work a year, under the Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) and also villagers were given Forest Rights Pattadar passbook. In 2014, the village was merged with Narsipatnam Municipality resulting in the villagers losing the benefit of getting employment under EAS.
The tribal people had hoped that the merger with the municipality would ensure development of their village. Contrary to their aspirations, there was no development and they had also deprived of the benefits, which they were enjoying earlier, alleged Mr. Govinda Rao. He demanded that the Narsipatnam municipality take up construction of the road without any further delay.