04-08-2025
Tribespeople rejoice as work on road to hamlet begins
The tribespeople of various hamlets in Anantagiri mandal of ASR district were in a jubilant mood after work on a much-awaited road to their hamlets began on Monday. Dancing to Dhimsa tunes, they gave expression to their happiness and relief.
They also took pictures of the contractor performing puja to the excavator before starting the work near Ballagaruvu.
The tribespeople have been demanding roads to their hilltop hamlets for years. At times, funds were sanctioned and work on roads began under various projects. Most of the time, however, the contractors abandoned the work midway owing to various reasons, allege Adivasi Girijana Sangham leaders.
On December 20, 2024, Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan trekked from Ballagaruvu to Vajangi and laid the foundation stone for a BT road from Gummanthi to Rachakilam via Reddipadu. In January, the government sanctioned ₹11.63 crore for a 12-km road from Dayarthi to Madrebu via Ballagaruvu and Vajangi to provide a road link to the hilltop hamlets.
Only after the Dayarthi–Tunisebu main road via Madrebu is completed can the Rachakilam road be laid. Though funds had been sanctioned for the main road, the work was yet to start, they say.
According to sources, ₹3.60 crore was sanctioned under Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Gram Sadak Yojana in 2012-13 for a road from Ballagaruvu to Reddipadu via Gummanthi, but the work was abandoned midway. In 2018, ₹1.50 crore was sanctioned for a concrete road from Ballagaruvu to Dayarthi.
Lack of roads make medical treatment almost inaccessible for the tribespeople. In many cases, ailing people had to be carried in dolies from their hamlets to roads kilometres away.
Recently, the tribespeople had staged protests on horseback, demanding the early completion of the road for which the Deputy Chief Minister had laid the foundation stone.
