THAKELAPALLY(NALGONDA): For a 22-year-old Sreedevi Pothagone from Thakelapally village, around 60 km from Hyderabad, going to college is a Herculean task. After walking for a kilometre to the auto-rickshaw stand, a long wait ensues for 20 or 30 passengers to get the auto going.
“The story is same in return direction too. There are days when I finish my classes early but have no option other than waiting for an auto with enough number of people. I come back late sometimes, Sreedevi,” says.
Women from the nearby thandas have to walk miles to get things done. “Ma kosam evar pani chestaru? Mem adavi manushulam. (We are forest people. Who will care about us?) We are used to walking 12 km a day),” says Bicham Islavath, a 45-year-old from Chevula Thanda.
The nearest town Mall is at least 8 to 9 km from the villages - Thekalapally, Ummapuram, Chakali Seripallu and tandas - Rottigadda, Chevula and Palem.
“Even though Mall is a hub for everything, there is no bus facility. Commuting is dependent on availability of auto-rickshaws, and that is completely unpredictable,” says Mudalem Mallesh, from Thakelapally. Both the children of Mallesh are studying. However, living in Thakelapally makes studies a difficult task.
“They are fatigued and have lost interest in studies, thanks to the long hours of commute,” Mallesh says. Villagers, meanwhile, lament that their complaints to authorities have never been considered.
“For long we have been asking for a facility but now we are tired. We submitted representations to divisional manager, but to no avail,” adds Guttam Krishnayya from the same village.
Indifferent officials
The level of official indifference in the matter was revealed when students of the village took the matter with the sarpanch. Sreedevi, a student from the village, said when her friend and relative asked for a bus service at a Grama Sabha meeting, the sarpanch said, “Pelli cheskuni poye danivi, niku bus gurinchi enduku amma? (You will get married and leave, why do you care about it).
When contacted, Madhusudhan, divisional manager of Nalgonda bus station under whom these villages come, told Express that the problem would have been solved had the villagers submitted a representation on the same.
When informed that representations were submitted in past, he said, “They must have spoken to the district officer. Ask them to come to me and I will conduct a survey and see if there is feasibility to run a bus in the area.”
Madhusudan also said villages are not connected due to projects that have been taken up. “Salaries of employees was taking a blow and there was no return on investment even on diesel. Hence, we stopped the service,” he added. Anjaiah, however, laments, “Things are not same anymore, but they don’t understand it.”
While heading back to the city, we give a ride to a limping old woman, her frail husband and another old woman who came to collect their pension at the village school. “It would have taken us an hour or more to cover this 12 km distance to the road,” they said and walked off with a smile. It was 12 pm and they couldn’t have waited till 5 pm for next auto.