Residents of hamlets on Anamalai Hills demand separate panchayat for health, educational needs
A recent incident of a pregnant woman in labour who had to be carried on a makeshift stretcher from a remote hamlet adjoining Udumalpet on the Anamalai Hills in Tiruppur district to the nearest primary health centre (PHC), has prompted the tribal residents in this cluster of hamlets to reiterate their longpending demand for the formation of a new village panchayat to address their basic needs of school education and health.
In the absence of a PHC in their village, Nagammal (22) had to be carried on the stretcher for seven km by her husband and relatives, from their house in Kuzhipatti to the Thirumoorthy Hill Settlement, and from there, was taken in a vehicle to the health centre at Erisanampatti, about 15 km away, where she was delivered of a female baby.
Work to lay a road from Kurumalai, which is close to the hamlets to Thirumoorthy Hill Settlement, at a cost of ₹49 lakh has been initiated.
However, a proper school and basic healthcare still remain out of reach for residents here, as their hamlets fall under the jurisdictions of different panchayats, administrative centres for which are located very far away, residents complain.
For instance, Kuzhipatti, Melkurumalai and Kilkurumalai hamlets are under the jurisdiction of Dhali Town Panchayat, while Manadappu and Kattupatti are under the ambit of Devanampudur Panchayat, which is located to the east of PollachiAliyar Road in the plains.
For a long time now, residents here have desisted from voting in the elections to the local bodies, demanding that a new panchayat for their cluster of hamlets be formed.
A PHC for these clusters is an absolute necessity, said S. Thanraj, a tribal rights activist. The presence of the panchayat office here would also pave way for implementing the MGNREGA scheme to improve livelihoods, he pointed out.
The only primary school for the hamlets has a teacher who only comes in two or three days a week. Students have to move to the plains even for upper primary education, but many drop out eventually, Mr. Thanraj said.