Raipur/New Delhi
Fed up with governmental apathy for years, residents of two villages namely Sardih and Bagdharidand villages, inhabited by Pahadi Korwa, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), have given a call to boycott polls in next month’s Assembly polls.
The residents of the two tribal villages in Chhattisgarh’s Korba district have pointed to the lack of basic facilities like potable water and power supply in their area as the reasons behind their decision.
Around 150 families of Pahadi Korwa reside in villages of Kerakachhar village panchayat, located in a forest area, around 20 km away from Korba city. The villages have also been struggling with the menace of elephant-human conflict.
The constituency, held by BJP MLA Nanki Ram Kanwar, will see voting in the second phase of the two-phased polls in the State on November 17.
According to media reports, pamphlets have been put up in the two villages giving calls to boycott voting while a banner with the same message has been hung on their outskirts.
“We have been demanding drinking water facility, power supply and mobile towers and other basic amenities for a long time, but public representatives have never paid heed to us,” Santosh, a resident of Sardih, who belongs to the Pahadi Korwa community, was quoted as saying by a news agency.
Pahadi Korwas of Sardih, Bagdharidand, Khurribhauna and nearby villages are still forced to drink water obtained by digging pits in the forest land, he said adding there are no roads to reach these villages.
A banner put up by the residents outside the villages reads, “Sardih and Bagdharidand boycott poll as villages have not received electricity.”
Korba Zila Panchayat Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Vishwadeep said he has received information about it and he and other officials will visit the villages to understand the issues raised by the villagers.
“We will try to persuade the villagers to withdraw their boycott call and urge them to take part in the election process,” Vishwadeep, the IAS officer who is also the nodal officer of voter awareness programme in the district, said.
The Election Commission had said that an intensive drive was carried out to ensure enrolment of voters belonging to five PVTGs- Abhujmaria, Kamar, Pahadi Korwa, Birhor and Baiga in the State.
Announcing the poll schedule in five States, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar too had announced that the poll watchdog has enrolled 100 percent enrolment of PVTGs.
