BJP TODAY

May 1--15, 2003 - Vol. 12, No. 09

Village in MP showcase got Uma funds, CM's modelling job
Deepri sarpanch complains of lack of funds and how he has to kowtow to politicians to get even basic facilities

Deepri, Bhopal, April 20: Naye zamane ke saath, Madhya Pradesh, is the catchline. Madhya Pradesh is moving with the times. 'Forget what they say...(aji chodiye sahab inki baatein,' screams the hoarding in the heart of Bhopal. '...their eyes are closed, every road in the village is now pucca, each house has a tap, more work is going on.'

The statement is attributed to the sarpanch of Deepri village, Ghanshyam Patidar, who is attired in a traditional dress and waving his hand dismissively. The underlying message is spelt out at the bottom: '22,029 panchayats are deciding on their own development'.

It was time for a reality check and The Indian Express headed for Deepri, barely 25 km from the capital. The Congress government and the BJP have made development or the lack of it the main issue for the elections.

So, here was Deepri and some facts stared us in the face. The main village road - in the state government's care - that runs through the heart of Deepri and connects it to the nearest highway is not metalled. The roads in the Dalit basti are not metalled either and neither does tap water reach the basti.

The other village roads are indeed cemented but with partial funding from none other than Digvijay's bete noire Uma Bharti, the rest of the funds being provided by Congress Rajya Sabha MP Mabel Rebello - yes, the state government has not contributed in any way.

As for tap water, 100 out of 150 houses can boast of this, but with three-phase power supply restricted to just about four hours daily, each household gets water for no more than 10 minutes daily. They have been asking for a water storage tank for sometime now but to no avail.

''The pipeline runs through the village and about a hundred houses have taps. The water is supplied by a bore fitted with a 10 HP motor. Against the promised six hours, we get three-phase supply for three to four hours daily.

During this time we get 10 minutes of supply. Many residents would have refused to pay the Rs 75 per month charged for this but they know the panchayat is not at fault,'' says villager Baghmal Manahar.

Also, this only 'model village' in Bhopal district, is still waiting for a middle school, another long-standing demand.

The nearest such school is about 7 km away. So, is the nearest medical facility.
And the main witness to all this is sarpanch Ghanshyam Patidar himself, shorn of his traditional garb and somewhat bitter.

''We got most of the village roads cemented last year but the main road which connects us to the highway is unmetalled. This work is not in our hands and we have not been able to get anything done. They say the work is due this year but please write about it since something may get done,'' he says.

''Write also about our demand for a middle school - everyone, except for those who can afford private schools and bus fares, has problems. Yes, the roads in the Dalit basti are also not cemented. They are on one side of the village and we have run out of funds; we have been unable to get the money from anywhere,'' Patidar complains.

''Whatever funds we got was with great difficulty. I had to run around, be at the beck and call of the politicians, convince them that I am totally loyal to them,'' he said quite candidly. ''I am a Congressman but I take money from both parties. Rupees 2 lakh was given by Uma Bharti and Rs 2.5 lakh by Rebello, Congress Rajya Sabha MP. But now we need more money and we are unable to raise it.''

Kamal Singh, a Dalit - a former panch and husband of one - says they are not being discriminated against in the village and it was just a matter of a fund crunch, agreeing with Patidar.

(Courtesy Indian Express)