The visit to Bichpuri and Chanderpur was a real eye opener for amateurs(freelancer writer and social worker )like us. It is very difficult to digest that two villages , having same geographical area, similar occupational structure and the same village pradhan has shown contradictory patterns of development. Chanderpur and Bichpuri are two adjacent villages located in the northern part of uttar pradesh.
Chanderpur
On the one hand, Chanderpur has shown appreciable growth and development.The villagers have actively participated in constructional projects initiated under various flagship programmes such as national rural employment guarantee act . Our conversation with the village pradhan helped us to know that out of the various schemes devised for the development of the rural sector ( For example Sarva Siksha Abhiyan , National rural employment guarantee act, Mid day meal etc), NREGA has stood apart as far as chanderpur is concerned.
Our discussion with the villagers of chanderpur revealed that although NREGA has brought a relief and addressed towards the need of generating employment opportunities in the village but since chanderpur is situated at a location which has proximity to the city(Bareilly), the villagers have financially better options of employment. On comparison we found out that person working under NREGA earns Rs 100 per day. On the other hand, a person engaged in various constructional works across the nearby cities or village earns Rs 120 per day (on a average)
Our survey is based on observation , conversation with villagers , interview with village Pradhan and Gram Panchayat helped us to categorise the problem of the chanderpur village into following points.
Poor availability of electricity
Although, the issue has been raised by the pradhan at the various block meeting but till date no concrete action has been taken.
Distribution of water supply
There is a need for a improvement in pipelines for better supply and distibution of water throughout the village. On physical verification , it was found out the water pipes were damaged at various places leading to leakage of water .
Scarcity of medical facilities
There is lack of basic medical facilities in the village and no qualified doctor is available within the vicinity of village leading to a lot of deaths in the village in cases which can be cured under normal circumstances.
The way forward
The Pradhan along with other Gram Panchayat members suggested, establishing community asset such as community center for the development of the village. This asset can be used to generate a source of income for the village which in turn can also be used to generate employment opportunities. It was also observed that the majority of works undertaken under NREGA has been used for rural connectivity and others shelf of projects ie Water conservation , drought proofing , renovation of traditional bodies, land development etc is completely ignored.
We have learnt from our survey in chanderpur that although development has taken place but plenty of challenges lies ahead. A few dynamic steps in the right direction is important for the development to be termed as steady.
Bichpuri
The term development can be hardly be associated with bichpuri. The authorities such as the village pradhan,Gram Panchayat, panchayat members etc have been ignorant about the growth nad development of Bichpuri.The villagers have no say in the admistration (or the lack of it.) The villagers are deprived of basic facilities such as food , shelter, road etc. The fact that the same pradhan who has played an integral part in the development of chandarpur has been completly laid back and ignorant about Bichpuri is hard to understand. The village is under a miserable condition and faces plenty of challenges. We have tried to summarise the problems into following points
1) Poor connectivity to urban areas due to miserable conditions of roads which is accident prone leading to a lot of deaths, especially in the rainy season.
2) There is widespread poverty in the village owing to lack of a reliable source of income.
3) The villages are susceptible to a series of diseases due to poor sanitation and inhygenic living conditions. To add to this the doctors , medical facilities available in the village is not upto the mark.
4) The state of the schools in the village is appalling. The school neither has the infrastructure nor has the teachers/staff to impart education to children .
The way forward or backward (if you would like to put it that way)
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