Shivarajnagar near Bangarpet lacks basic amenities

Shivarajnagar Colony, located two kms from town, is bereft of basic infrastructure. Narrow roads, dangerously dangling electrical wires, a serious shortage of water outlets typify this colony of 70 families who belong to Schedule Caste.

The colony falls under the jurisidiction of the Hulibele Gram Panchayat and is located on the outskirts of Bangarpet. The residential area has about 250 voters, a majority of whom eke out their livelihood as daily wage workers.

‘Routeless’

The colony lacks a proper road. The road which connects the village with the main road is so narrow that ambulances cannot enter the village to pick-up patients during emergencies. The residents have to wait for autos which come from Bangarpet or somehow shift the patient to the main road themselves.

The shortage of water is another problem. People queue up in front of the lone tap in the area, sometimes from 4 am. The water pressure is woefully poor and it’s a challenge for people to obtain adequate water. The area gets its water supply from the nearby Salem town.

Power shifts

Since power is supplied in shifts to the village, any outage during in the morning means that there will be no water supply for the day.

The gram panchayat supplies water through tankers twice a week. But the water is not fit for consumption. Though a borewell has been sunk to tackle the water crisis, delays in installing the motor have exacerbated the problem.

Of the 70 houses in the area, 40 are located at an upper gradient while the rest are located near Hattigiri tank, at a lower gradient. The colony has no drainage system. A small drain constructed for the flow of rain water serves as a sewer. It has been two years since the sewer pipe broke away.

Futile complaints

“Complaints to the gram panchayat for repairs went in vain,” say Murugan, a resident who explained that the problem becomes aggravted during rains, as water gushes into homes due to clogged drains.

Venkatesh, an activist of the Dalit Sangharsha Samiti alleged that no work had been done at the colony under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). Power transmission lines run close to the trees and an electrical accident cannot be ruled out during rains. “Requests to Bescom have not yielded any result,” said Muniswamy, a resident.

A majority of the residents said that no one from the administration had met with them to hear their complaints.