<p>While the village does not pose any particular disease, it is difficult to find a house not hit by some vector-borne disease due to unhygienic living conditions.<br /><br />In the absence of toilets, any open space in the village is a defecating place. Drains are an unknown concept and sewage flows through the lanes and bylanes of the entire village making it a breeding ground for mosquitoes. The village hardly gets potable water and bore wells and open wells exist amid flowing filth. <br /><br />It seems like health and hygiene has been removed from the civic agenda of the village. According to a rough estimate, at least 50 per cent of the population suffer from diseases like malaria, filaria, chikungunya, gastroenteritis, tuberculosis, etc. <br /><br />Absenteeism of children in schools is a common feature since they are either sick or they have migrated along with their parents to other places. Bassappa, who has filaria, points out that the children of the former gram panchayat chairman were also suffering from filaria. There are at least 70 people in the village inflicted with this disease.<br /><br />Ayyamma Badiger, a victim of elephantiasis, says: “I married my maternal uncle. Who will marry a disease stricken woman?’’<br /><br />People go to a couple of private medical practitioners and avail drugs from the two pharmacies in the village as there is no government health establishment here.<br /><br />The launching of a number of health and hygiene schemes particularly the Total Sanitation Drive has made no impact on the village. The collapse of panchayat raj administration is apparent.<br /></p>
<p>While the village does not pose any particular disease, it is difficult to find a house not hit by some vector-borne disease due to unhygienic living conditions.<br /><br />In the absence of toilets, any open space in the village is a defecating place. Drains are an unknown concept and sewage flows through the lanes and bylanes of the entire village making it a breeding ground for mosquitoes. The village hardly gets potable water and bore wells and open wells exist amid flowing filth. <br /><br />It seems like health and hygiene has been removed from the civic agenda of the village. According to a rough estimate, at least 50 per cent of the population suffer from diseases like malaria, filaria, chikungunya, gastroenteritis, tuberculosis, etc. <br /><br />Absenteeism of children in schools is a common feature since they are either sick or they have migrated along with their parents to other places. Bassappa, who has filaria, points out that the children of the former gram panchayat chairman were also suffering from filaria. There are at least 70 people in the village inflicted with this disease.<br /><br />Ayyamma Badiger, a victim of elephantiasis, says: “I married my maternal uncle. Who will marry a disease stricken woman?’’<br /><br />People go to a couple of private medical practitioners and avail drugs from the two pharmacies in the village as there is no government health establishment here.<br /><br />The launching of a number of health and hygiene schemes particularly the Total Sanitation Drive has made no impact on the village. The collapse of panchayat raj administration is apparent.<br /></p>
