The Hindu : National : Koljheri upset over cancellation of Manmohan Singh's visit

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Sunday, Jul 02, 2006

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National

Koljheri upset over cancellation of Manmohan Singh's visit

Meena Menon

Most of the villagers are on hunger strike demanding he pay the visit

— Photo: Vivek Bendre

DISAPPOINTED: People of the village on hunger strike as the Prime Minister cancelled his visit.

KOLJHERI VILLAGE (YAVATMAL DISTRICT): Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's plans to visit this village on Saturday ensured its instant fame. Journalists, officials and policemen swarmed the place for a few days and the main focus was the house of Gosavi Pawar, a farmer who committed suicide on May 8.

However, on Friday night the people were told that Dr. Singh's visit was cancelled. Official sources said the newly prepared helipad was slushy after heavy rain and the Prime Minister's helicopter would not be able to land. That came as no consolation to the 300 odd residents of this Banjara dominated village. Now Gosavi Pawar's house has become the centre of an indefinite hunger strike by his wife Kamala, son Prakash and practically the entire village.

`Hopes dashed'

Kamala and other women on hunger strike say that the Prime Minister should have come. "There is so much sorrow here," says Kamala. Gaurabai Chavan says that the Prime Minister "dashed our hopes. We thought he would do something. He should not only visit rich people."

Susheelabai Chavan, of the Akhil Bharatiya Lamhani Sangh, said it was an insult to the village. "We think if we die someone will come, but they only come for our votes," she said. Savitrabai Chavan said if the government had distributed money to the poor instead of spending it on arrangements, something good would have happened.

Gosavi's suicide is a pointer to the severe crisis faced by this region. All the farmers are indebted and even when they apply for fresh loans they do not get them. Dadusingh Ade says that he applied for a loan of Rs. 20,000 but got only Rs 1,800.

The district administration was working round the clock to ensure the roads in the village were paved and electricity was restored on Friday after many days.

Since Independence, villagers said no official had ever visited this village but in the last week, hundreds of policemen were deployed there apart from officials who were supervising arrangements for the VIP visit. However, this morning, the stream of journalists, police and government officials all were absent. The village wore a desolate look and its residents were angry. Even the makeshift arch to welcome Dr. Singh looked faded.

The village had great expectations from this visit. Babulal Pawar said, "We have no roads, no lights but suddenly we became so important. All that is over now." Gosavi's son Prakash is grim. "A few days ago because Manmohan Singh was to come here, the local MLA Vasant Purke came and gave me a cheque of Rs. 30,000. The rest of the Rs 70,000 is yet to come," says Pawar.

He said the Prime Minister should have come and seen for himself the plight of this village, where almost all the families live below the poverty line. "The village demands that he come and visit us otherwise he will be responsible for what happens to me and my family," says Pawar.

Some people said their cotton sowing was delayed because they were busy cooking and feeding the policemen camping here. Prakash says the district administration was not at all keen on the Prime Minister coming here.

Since last night when they came to know that the visit was cancelled, no one has slept here, he said.

The people of this village have also resisted all attempts since Friday night to be taken to Yavatmal airport where the Prime Minister met some farmers from the area.

Due to heavy rains, Dr. Singh's schedule was changed and he arrived at the Jawaharlal Darda airport at Yavatmal to meet a few select farmers. Huge crowds waited outside the airport and many complained they were denied a chance to narrate their troubles to the Prime Minister.

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