Tribesman Loses Wife, Child with Difficult Access to Road
Kameswara Rao said they have repeatedly been pleading to the district collector to intervene and initiate the road work but to no avail,” reflecting the collective frustration within his community over their helplessness.
Visakhapatnam: To reach Daunur Hospital, Kondu tribe residents of Jajula Bandha, a remote hilltop, have to walk 28 kilometres. This distance cost Marri Kameswara Rao everything he valued.
Kameswara Rao lost his teenaged wife Kumari on June 22, as she could not walk the distance to reach a hospital, as she had been quite ill.
On August 19, Kameswara Rao’s three-month-old son, already motherless, began coughing uncontrollably. Kameswara Rao administered medicine and started carrying the infant to the hospital. But the child died before Kameswara Rao could reach the hospital.
No vehicle can access Jajula Bandha due to its treacherous terrain. “If those who need medical treatment cannot walk, they have to die without receiving care,” Kameswara Rao told Deccan Chronicle, with his voice heavy with grief.
In 2020, villagers from Jajula Bandha and the nearby Pitrigadda came together to raise Rs 6 lakh to construct a road on their own. Then, in 2023–24, the state government approved Rs 1 crore for a formal road connecting Arla to Jajula Bandha.
Kameswara Rao stated, “Tribal Welfare Department withdrew Rs 29 lakh without executing any work. Following our protests, they hastily constructed four culverts. But the road itself remains incomplete. This ongoing isolation and medical emergencies are leading to loss of lives,” he pointed out.
Kameswara Rao said they have repeatedly been pleading to the district collector to intervene and initiate the road work but to no avail,” reflecting the collective frustration within his community over their helplessness.
