a day ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
No road for locals in Odisha's Naxal-hit Tulsi village
MALKANGIRI: The 33-km road linking Tulsi village in Mathili block to the rest of the region continues to cause severe hardships for locals, particularly during the monsoon.
The construction of the road, which originates from Matiguda and winds through Dandiapadar, Daldali, Goguapadar, Kotuapadar, and Kirimiti, all remote Maoist-affected villages, is yet to be completed even after one year.
Despite the establishment of a BSF camp in Tulsi village to provide security and facilitate smooth construction, progress has been slow. Villagers, especially the elderly and schoolgoing children, are bearing the brunt of the delay. 'In the absence of a pucca road, we are facing a lot of difficulties,' said Lekma Durua, a resident of Tulsi village.
A representative of the construction company attributed the delay to a shortage of materials in the locality. However, social activist Sarat Chandra Buruda alleged that the contractor is illegally operating a stone crusher without forest and mining clearances and resorting to stone blasting to procure materials. He further claimed that no official application for setting up the crusher unit has been filed.
