COVID-19 strikes in Odisha’s rural heartland, villagers pushed further into poverty
The Hindu
Social activists demand that the government come up with new programmes to address the pandemic-induced new poor.
Thirteen-year-old Jagannath Rana is yet to come to terms with the loss of his father Biranchi, 45, who died of COVID-19 four days ago in Odisha’s Nuapada district. Jagannath works as an assistant in a shop six km away from his village Mahulmunda in Khariar block, but has not been able to find some time to grieve over the biggest tragedy of his life. He is not alone. With the pandemic triggering untimely deaths across the length and breadth of Nuapada, families are grappling over the loss of their family members as they scamper to earn their daily bread.The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.