A year on, a man continues to maintain road in Mala
Udupi: For over a year now,
Govinda Malekudiya
, 56, a resident of the ST colony in Peradka, under the Mala gram panchayat in Karkala taluk, has been single-handedly repairing a half-kilometre stretch of mud road after repeated pleas to
local authorities
failed to yield any results.Environmental activist Arathi Ashok told TOI that after the issue was highlighted in the media last year, it was brought to the attention of the Lokayukta.
The Lokayukta directed the panchayat and social welfare department to take action, but no road has been constructed for the ST colony so far. "We even filed an RTI seeking a response, but received none. We have been regularly following up with the authorities, but there has been no progress," she said.Undeterred, Govinda has taken matters into his own hands. Armed with just a pickaxe and spade, he not only built a motorable mud road but also provided basic drainage facilities to prevent waterlogging during the monsoons, benefiting around 25 families in the area. A former daily wage labourer for nearly 30 years, he quit his job during the Covid-19 to focus on this cause. Govinda, an agriculturist, also planted over 50 saplings and plans to plant more along the Sringeri-Mala-Bajagoli Road as part of his
environmental conservation
efforts."Last year, after I approached the Lokayukta, they directed the department to repair about 200m of the road from ward No. 1 to Bugatugundi. Though the road was widened using an earthmover, asphalting work is still pending. The elected representatives do not seem to be showing interest in the project," Arathi said.Panchayat development officer Srinivas S said that asphalting is still pending. "We will write to the concerned and try to seek funds through the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP)," he said.
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