For the first time since India's Independence, the Chhattisgarh government has started building roads in Pudaang village to connect it with the rest of the state.

Pudaang village is situated is situated 140 kms away from Balrampur district and has population of 2200. The under-construction road in future will help the village’s tribal people to avail government services like education, health, ration and all government schemes.

The village is surrounded by forests and valleys, and this remote geographical location makes it extremely difficult and challenging to build a road here. Besides this place is a major Naxal-affected area. Adjacent to Pudaang village is Budhapahad area bordering Jharkhand which is considered to be the hotbed of Naxalism.

Naxalite activities in this area had adversely affected the pace of development works in here. Since the formation of the state, 435 incidents of Naxal violence have taken place in this region, but in the past four years, only four incidents have occurred, that too without any casualty. Police have chased out almost all the Naxals from this area. In the last 4 years, 4 camps have been established in 24 km, at Sabag, Bandarchua, Bhutahi and Pudaang to deal with Naxalites. The state government has provided support and assistance in opening these camps.

As per a government official’s statement, “People here had to face major inconvenience in case of a medical emergency, due to the poor road connectivity of the village. The road will benefit the children of the village to get access to colleges.

The road will help local children to get access to colleges. Without a road, residents had to trek to Bhutahi, another village, to obtain rations. However, the district government will begin providing rations to this area after the road is built.

In the absence of road farmers of this place have to go to Samari paddy procurement center to sell paddy, but now the proposal to open a paddy procurement center here has been sent. The village which had only solar lights will soon get electric poles.

Most of the people in Pudang village are farmers and cattle herders. The district administration has started the work of construction of Gothan here. Villagers believe that the establishment of gauthan would give a boost to the economic activities in the village. Cow dung and Gaumutra procurement would further improve the financial condition of the villagers.

Image source: Indian Express