HYDERABAD: A bloomer made by authorities in the cheque given as ex gratia to a family who lost one of their members due to floods in Gaganpahad of Rajendranagar, has forced the kin to run from pillar to post for the last one year. On October 13, 2020, following heavy flooding in many parts of the city, Mohammed Sadiq who used to work as a lorry driver, his wife Kareema Begum, and two sons died, when the bund of Appa Cheruvu breached and water levels reached a height of 12 feet near his home located behind the Celebration Convention in Gaganpahad.
To provide financial aid to the kin of flood victims, the State government announced an ex gratia of `5 lakh. As part of this, MA&UD Minister KT Rama Rao visited families who lost their members in the floods to hand over the cheques. While the cheque issued to Kareema Begum’s parents was in order, in the ex gratia cheque handed over to Mohammed Sadiq’s brother, the name was spelt as Mohammed ‘Siddique’. Therefore it could not be encashed.
Family members blame authorities for their negligence which has kept them waiting for a fresh cheque since last October. Speaking to TNIE, Mohammed Ishaq, Sadiq’s brother, said that when he brought this mistake to the notice of the respective RDO and Tahsildar, officials did not pay any attention. “One ex gratia cheque on behalf of my brother’s wife was received by her relatives, while no ex gratia cheques have been sanctioned for his two sons so far,” he said.
“To sort out this issue, I had visited the RDO and Tahsildar offices several times who asked me to go to Jadcherla in Mahbubnagar as my brother is a native of this place to take part in an inquiry. When I visited Mahbubnagar, officials said there is no such inquiry,” Ishaq said.
As this did not work out, Ishaq again approached the RDO and Tahsildar and at last in this September, municipal officials came to inquiry about out the genuineness of the case. They collected all details about the cause of death of Mohammed Sadiq. The file is still pending in the GHMC office, Rajendranagar, Ishaq said.
Family blames authorities for negligence
In the cheque handed over to Mohammed Sadiq’s brother, the name was spelt as Mohammed ‘Siddique’. Therefore it could not be encashed. Family members blame authorities for their negligence which has kept them waiting for a fresh cheque since last October