Collector, officials trek 22 km to reach hilltop hamlet
Pattas, road and extension of ayacut area to the 12 families residing in Ijjaluru promised
Two young IAS officers along with forest and police officials trekked about 22 km in the hot sun on Saturday to reach a hamlet which had not been visited by any IAS officer in the recent past. The hamlet Ijjaluru in Maredumilli mandal of East Godavari does not have accessibility and no basic amenities too.
The village has 12 families belonging to the primitive tribal group — Konda Reddy — and in the last five to six Assembly elections they exercised their franchise only through mobile ballot and they know only Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Collector Karthikeya Mishra who took charge recently visited the village along with ITDA Project Officer A.S. Dinesh Kumar, Divisional Forest Officer Nandini, ASP Nayeem and other officials by trekking from the Bhadrachalam-Maredumilli road.
After reaching Ijjaluru, he inquired about the education, health and the distribution of ration. He appealed to the 12 families to shift their homes near the main road adding the government would construct houses and extend them special package.
But the families refused to come out of the village saying they had two to three acres of podu land and their livelihood was making broomsticks. They asked the Collector to give them pattas for hill slope cultivation, construct school-cum-anganwadi centre and lay road.
The Collector told them that a resident, Nageswara Reddy, will be appointed as the Resource Contract Teacher and a class five student Sadala Kumari as anganwadi worker. An Asha worker would also appointed.
He presented four litre water filters to all the families and said steps would be taken to extend the ayacut area through solar system after studying the possibility of lift irrigation scheme.
He assured that steps would be taken to lay road by meeting the forest department’s objections. He maintained that loan to the tune of Rs. 15,000 would be sanctioned for each woman by restoring dwacra group and called upon the villagers to enhance their living standards by making use of it.
After enquiring about the crop being cultivated, he assured them that pattas would be issued to hill slope land according to guidelines. When the officials asked the villagers about medical facilities, the ANMs said there were three pregnant women and it was very tough for them to reach the nearest PHC at Maredumilli, which was about 11 km. Immediately, the Collector ordered the women be brought to the PHC two weeks before delivery and the families be given Rs. 200 per day with free meal.
