Mudlocked And Overlooked, Vizianagaram And ASR Tribes Await Road Access
The three-and-a-half-kilometre mud track known locally as Gadda Vagu remains a year-round ordeal, turning into knee-deep slush during rains. For tribal women and children, this muddy stretch has become a daily battle, forcing them to appeal directly to district collectors for urgent intervention.
Visakhapatnam: Residents of Erradlavanipalem and Chinnagudem villages are facing hardships due to the lack of proper road connectivity between Gollapalem panchayat in Bondapalle mandal of Vizianagaram district and Rompalli panchayat in Ananthagiri mandal of Alluri Sitarama Raju (ASR) district.
The three-and-a-half-kilometre mud track known locally as Gadda Vagu remains a year-round ordeal, turning into knee-deep slush during rains. For tribal women and children, this muddy stretch has become a daily battle, forcing them to appeal directly to district collectors for urgent intervention.
Though the villages are located barely six kilometres from the Raipur national highway, Erradlavanipalem and Chinnagudem remain effectively cut off. Their only link to the Gollapalem BT road is through the treacherous Gadda Vagu path. Residents say that even a small paved road would transform their lives by improving access to schools, healthcare, and markets.
“Our children wade through mud to reach school. Ten of them walk from Chinnagudem to the Gollapalem MPP School every day. Even visiting a doctor has become impossible,” said Sukur Simhachalam, a resident of Chinnagudem.
While a BT road connects the highway to Devipelli Centre and further to Gollapalem, the final stretch to Chinnagudem remains unpaved. A gravel road linking Chinnagudem to Hilltop Gudem was recently washed away by heavy rains.
“Unless a small road is built from Gollapalem, ambulances cannot reach our villages. Both district collectors must coordinate to make this happen,” said Somila Appalaraju, the 2nd Ward member of Rompilli panchayat.
Tribal women have urged Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) project officers and the collectors of Vizianagaram and ASR districts to visit their villages and witness the situation firsthand. “Pregnant women and the sick must walk through mud to reach the BT road and catch an auto to Devipelli Centre. During heavy rains, even that becomes impossible,” Appalaraju added.
Despite repeated appeals, the issue remains unresolved. Girijana Sangam leader Konaparthi Simhachalam has called upon Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan to intervene and ensure the long-awaited road is constructed.