JOIN USPeople in the naxal-infested areas at Palligadde in Kulkunda village are a scared lot.
The rebels visiting their homes in the past two days has frightened them out of their wits.
The subsequent exchange of fire between the ultras and the anti-naxal force has only made things worse. Members of five families in the vicinity have locked up their houses and left for their relatives’ homes.
Gripped by fear psychosis, some of them have been admitted to a hospital. Those affected are five brothers — Belliappa, Hiriyanna, Babu, Monappa and Neelappa Gowda — who reside along with their families in a house near Palligadde in a forest buffer zone. They have, however, not received the extract of the record of tenancy and crops (RTC).
The five families together own only one acre and 15 cents of land, with each having a share of only 23 cents.
Hiriyanna is a driver and the others are daily wage workers. They have no other source of income. Three people belonging to these families are admitted to hospital for treatment. While one had low blood pressure, the other has a heart problem.
Neelappa’s wife Shivamma had lost consciousness when the naxals came calling.
The wives of Hiriyanna and Belliappa have taken refuge in their relatives’ houses following the incident. With the ultras taking away rice from their homes, they are not able to cook food or feed the livestock.
They are not even able to work in the fields for fear of being attacked by the extremists. The children are at their grandparents’ place and are going to their school at Subramanya from there.