DHARMAPURI: A 13-year-old girl of Alakattu Vattuvanahalli panchayat, a hamlet located on a hillock, died of snakebite on Thursday after it took nearly two hours for the villagers to reach the bottom of the hill by carrying her on a doli for 8km on unmotorable road.
According to sources, at least 200 people belonging to 40 families live in the hamlet, which is bereft of any basic facilities, located at Pennagaram taluk in Dharmapuri district. More than 60 children from the village walk a total of 10 km every day—5 km each way—on muddy roads to reach the nearest school. The villagers, who are mostly labourers, have to climb down the hill on foot to reach towns to eke out a living.
The nearest public health centre (PHC) at Seengadu is located at least 2.5 km from the foothill. An auto was waiting to rush the victim, R Kasturi, to the PHC, but she died on the way, sources said. A video showing villagers carrying the girl on a doli through rugged terrain went viral on social media on Thursday.
The residents shared the video to draw attention to their situation and urge authorities to take action. The villagers are seen struggling to navigate the steep path in a bid to seek medical help for the girl.
Speaking to TNIE, A Pasuvaraj, a local resident, said, “We did everything we could to save her, but she died before we could reach the bottom of the hill. It takes more than an hour to trek down, and it takes even longer if someone has to be carried on a doli.” He added that the girl was picking greens with her sisters when a snake bit her.
‘Many died due to delay in reaching hosp on time’
Another resident, K Sivappa, said the villagers have long struggled with poor connectivity. “This is not the first time such a tragedy has happened. Many elderly and sick people have died because we couldn’t reach the hospital on time.
Our village is separated by the Kesarguli River, and trekking becomes harder during rainy season. We want the state government to help us.” Officials from the Pennagaram revenue department, when contacted by TNIE, said, “Most roads leading to Alakattu lie within the forest areas. We had paved mud roads for the villagers, but we will look into the incident.”