VIJAYAWADA: Swachh Bharat, it seems, is not applicable to them because they live along a drain, but not by choice.All live in small huts, without proper power supply and drainage connection. One hundred and fifty families, which migrated from Tamil Nadu and other places in search of livelihood, since last 40 years are living at Gamela Road of Auto Nagar in Vijayawada.
Santhala Durga Rao, who works as a daily wage earner said, “Netas only recognize us during elections and for rest of the time do not bother about us. Whether we live or die, they do not care. No one is interested in providing basic infrastructures like water and power, leave alone sanitation.”
Water tanker comes once in every two days, but water is not free, as assumed.
A group of dozen families has to shell out `100 to fetch the water and not a day passes when they do not curse their fate.Foul smell from factory waste dumped into the side drain puts them at risk of respiratory diseases, but they have nowhere to go.All they can do is to wait to get the attention of the policy makers.
