Telangana: Sarpanch turns labourer as govt bills remain pending

May 29, 2022

While Anitha has been using some part of the Rs 40,000 sanctioned to gram panchayats by the state every month, towards paying off this debt, it leaves her with no income of her own. "I also need to pay the staff, electricity bill, EMI for the tractor trolley and diesel, from that money. So, there is nothing left for me," the sarpanch added.

Such is her plight that she has had to pull her two sons out of the private school they were attending and enrol them in a local school in her village. When TOI visited her recently, she was seen tilling a field and carrying piles of mud on her head. Anitha said she gets Rs 150-220 every day for the work, under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. "We have appealed to the district collector, R G Hanumanthu, several times urging him to release the funds, but to no avail," said Anitha's husband Ramesh, adding how multiple appeals to officials of the district rural development agency and revenue department too have failed to yield any result.

Anitha is now trying to get an audience with Husnabad MLA Vodithela

Sathish Kumar

. "He is busy with his son's marriage at the moment...we hope he can meet me soon and help me," she said.

Repeated attempts to reach the district collector, DRDA officials and MLA for a comment, failed.