HAZARIBAG: A 22-year-old woman, who was in acute labour pain, was forced to walk 7 km to get to an ambulance to reach the nearest government health centre. The incident happened at the Daridhadhar panchayat in the Ichak block of Hazaribag district on Thursday night.
The area, which is crying for roads, drinking water and electricity for long a time, falls under the Koderma parliamentary constituency represented by Union minister of state for higher education Annapurna Devi and the Barkatha assembly constituency represented by BJP-supported independent MLA Amit Kumar Yadav.
The panchayat has four villages – Puranpunia, Gordih, Saliyama and Dhongri – having a total population of 15,000.
Late on Thursday night, Munni Devi developed labour pain. Her village is located on a hilltop where there is no road connectivity and the government-run Mamta Vahan ambulance could not reach her place to pick her up at the doorstep. With no help coming, Munni, along with her husband Surendra Kishku, and some other family members embarked on an arduous 7-km walk to Fufundih village where the ambulance was waiting.
Some neighbours also joined the family to help them in the taxing journey across jungles and paddy fields.
Meera Devi, one of the women who accompanied Munni, said the villagers have been demanding the administration to build a proper road in their area but to no avail.
Daridhadhar was a Maoist-affected panchayat a decade ago and there has been no activity on the development front, the locals rued. Mukhiya Nand Kishore Mehta said, “Both the MP and the MLA visited Ichak to hear the people’s woes in the past but no progress has been made, so far. The minister in the past assured to fulfil their demand for a road. We also demanded a doctor for the health sub-centre in the panchayat but the centre is closed due to manpower shortage let alone a doctor.”
Hazaribag deputy commissioner Nancy Sahay didn’t respond to calls for comments. Ramesh Kumar Hembram, the secretary of Anusuchit Janjati Morcha of BJP, said he has informed the MP and the MLA about the problems faced by the villagers but sadly, no action could be seen on the ground, so far.
The area, which is crying for roads, drinking water and electricity for long a time, falls under the Koderma parliamentary constituency represented by Union minister of state for higher education Annapurna Devi and the Barkatha assembly constituency represented by BJP-supported independent MLA Amit Kumar Yadav.
The panchayat has four villages – Puranpunia, Gordih, Saliyama and Dhongri – having a total population of 15,000.
Late on Thursday night, Munni Devi developed labour pain. Her village is located on a hilltop where there is no road connectivity and the government-run Mamta Vahan ambulance could not reach her place to pick her up at the doorstep. With no help coming, Munni, along with her husband Surendra Kishku, and some other family members embarked on an arduous 7-km walk to Fufundih village where the ambulance was waiting.
Some neighbours also joined the family to help them in the taxing journey across jungles and paddy fields.
Meera Devi, one of the women who accompanied Munni, said the villagers have been demanding the administration to build a proper road in their area but to no avail.
Daridhadhar was a Maoist-affected panchayat a decade ago and there has been no activity on the development front, the locals rued. Mukhiya Nand Kishore Mehta said, “Both the MP and the MLA visited Ichak to hear the people’s woes in the past but no progress has been made, so far. The minister in the past assured to fulfil their demand for a road. We also demanded a doctor for the health sub-centre in the panchayat but the centre is closed due to manpower shortage let alone a doctor.”
Hazaribag deputy commissioner Nancy Sahay didn’t respond to calls for comments. Ramesh Kumar Hembram, the secretary of Anusuchit Janjati Morcha of BJP, said he has informed the MP and the MLA about the problems faced by the villagers but sadly, no action could be seen on the ground, so far.