Ajaypuram Villagers Demand Local MGNREGA Works
Villagers said around 610 job cards have been issued across 16 villages under the panchayat.
Visakhapatnam: Residents of Ajaypuram village in Cheemalapadu panchayat of Ravikamatham mandal in Anakapalle district have demanded immediate allocation of local MGNREGA works, alleging that lack of employment opportunities in their area is forcing them to travel long distances for daily wages.
Villagers said around 610 job cards have been issued across 16 villages under the panchayat. However, administrative issues have affected implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) works. Earlier, two Village Resource Persons (VRPs) handled the workload, but after one was relieved of duties, the responsibility has fallen on a single VRP, affecting work allocation in Ajaypuram.
Residents said they are currently being forced to travel nearly six kilometres to Jilugu village for work, resulting in a 12-km daily commute. They alleged that most of their earnings are being spent on auto-rickshaw fares, leaving very little to support their families.
Villagers have demanded that stone-bunding works be sanctioned in Jogumpeta, Kadagadda and Ajaypuram itself. Ajaypuram alone has 30 active job cards, with residents holding pattas for 60 plots covering nearly 120 acres. Despite repeated representations to the Village Secretariat and other government officials, no action has been taken so far, they alleged.
Villagers, including Vanthala Jyothi, Pangi Ramesh, Pangi Sachin Kumar and Pangi Pawan Kumar, said rising prices of essential commodities and lack of local employment opportunities had pushed many families into hardship. They demanded immediate sanction of works in their village and reinstatement of the second VRP post.
In protest, residents staged a rally from Ajaypuram to Jogumpeta carrying pickaxes and shovels. K. Govinda Rao, assistant secretary of the Vyavasaya Karmika Sangham, supported the agitation and warned that villagers would stage a dharna outside the MPDO office if work was not provided by Monday. He also demanded sanction of stone-bunding and pond renovation works in Pedagaruva and Rayapadu areas.
