Tribals protest demanding school, road, ration depot in Ananthagiri

Visakhapatnam: In a desperate bid to access quality education and basic amenities, tribal residents of Kadarevu, Solabongu, and Kalyanagummi in Ananthagiri mandal staged a protest demanding the establishment of a school in their village. Currently, children from these hamlets are forced to walk nearly six kilometers to reach the nearest school, which is often unsafe and difficult.The students from these remote hamlets are studying at Tamarabba MPP School in Devarapalli mandal of Anakapalli district, and their daily commute is a harrowing experience. During heavy rainfall, the students are forced to stay home as there is no safe way for them to attend the school. When the water level in the Raiwada recedes, they travel to school by boat. However, when the water level is high, they are forced to walk around the hill for four kilometers.The villagers, led by elders Nandula Rajarao and R Rajarao, demanded that a special school be established in their village to alleviate the suffering of their children. CPM leader K Govinda Rao added that 21 more tribal children from villages such as Kadarevu and Goppala Palem walk 12 kilometers daily, crossing large hills, to reach Bodugaruvu for schooling. "In July 2024, villagers held a protest demanding a school, following which the Ananthagiri mandal education officer visited and promised to establish an alternative school. A proposal was submitted to the district collector and the district education officer of ASR district to set up a NRST (non-residential special training) school, but the government has not approved it," he said.The villagers also highlighted the inordinate delay in the construction of road from Nerellapudi to Kalyanagumma village. Despite a grant of Rs 1 crore being sanctioned, forest permissions were not granted, and necessary clearances have not been given even after a year. As a result, the villagers of Kalyanagumma are forced to travel through Anakapalli, Vizianagaram, and Alluri Sitarama Raju districts to reach Gumma Panchayat via Damaku and Cherikibidda to collect their ration rice.The tribals demanded the immediate establishment of a separate ration depot for these villages and the granting of special forest permissions for Kalyanagumma village. The government's inaction has left the villagers feeling frustrated and helpless.