Imphal, March 28 2010: With local villagers not sharing any faith with teachers sent by the State Government, a Government school located in Machi block of Chandel district is being run with fees collected from the students.

On the other hand, some people have been found scheming to withdraw money from the Government for a road repaired under NREGS by fraudulently claiming that the same road was repaired under Works Department.

These disclosures were made by people of 17 villages located along SitaUkhrul road under Machi block to a visiting team of journalists.

The interaction programme was jointly facilitated by the Rural People's Development Federation, All Tribal Women Organisation and Rural Education and Action for Change, Manipur.

The interaction programme was specifically organised to enable the villagers highlight their woes in view of the failure of the Government to take up any concrete action despite repeated appeals and reminders to Ministers, MLAs and Government officials.

The villages visited by the media team are located about 32 kms away from Tengnoupal-Sita road.

These villages �Shamukom, Simang, Nungtak, Gomi, Bongmol, Bongli, Khuljang, Sairel, Leithao, Maolhang, Tengkonbung, Bijang, Jangmolching, Khoibu Khullen, Maokot, Teljang and Tonglhang are largely inhabited by Maring, Khoibu and Kuki tribes.

Talking about education, the villagers informed that there one Junior High School at Bongli under District Council, one Primary School at Gomi and another Primary School at Bijang.

Plagued with the absence of adequate educational institutions, majority of the children are being denied the right to education.

Gomi Primary School has a single Government teacher.

But the villagers have no faith in the Government appointed teacher.

They hired two private teachers to teach at the Government school for which monthly tuition fee of Rs 100 is collected from each student.

The villagers hired private teachers because they feared that the Government teacher may completely stay away from the school in the event of any complaint or insistence to be regular.

Moreover, the villagers have certain reservations on the capability of the Government appointed teacher to impart education to the students as demanded by the present day education system.

The Primary School does not have any merit to be called a school.

It has only three rooms with two pairs of bench and desk in one room and four pairs in the other room.

The other two schools of the area are also in the same sorry state.

Even as Bijang Primary School is covered by Mid-Day Meal scheme, the students are provided meal only on the Independence Day (August 15) in a whole year.

On this day, the Headmaster would come to the school bringing some quantity of rice and feed the children with beef saying that the money was from the Headmaster's maintenance fund.

At other times, the students were neither given meal nor rice, said village secretary Daniel.

Health care facility is still a dream for these 17 villages.

There is not a single health centre in the whole area.

The plight is further compounded by the pathetic transport infrastructure available in the area.

These villages are connected to the outside world by bus service once in a week.

Under such extremely backward conditions, immunization of children is just empty words.

Delivery at hospitals or health centres is a luxury few families could afford.

At times of sickness or health problems, the villagers are totally helpless except seeking divine intervention.

Critically ill villagers are carried on a litter until a point where a vehicle would be available to take the patient to Kakching, Thoubal or Imphal.

Sanitary toilet is a rare sight in the whole area.

Coming to the topic of transport and communication infrastructure, the villagers only said, 'our roads are the same unreliable hilly roads'.

The road connecting Bongmol to Sairel Ato was a block level road, not worthy to be called a road.

This was widened by the villagers under NREGS works.

On the insistence and request of the villagers to the local MLA, an amount of Rs 10 lakhs was earmarked for development of the road under SPA by Works Department last year.

On being enquired about the failure to initiate development work of the road even after technical sanction for two kilometres was already given, it was discovered that one individual suspected to be close to the Works Minister has already started preparing bills to withdraw the sanctioned amount by claiming that the road development work had been executed, said secretary of Machi Sub-Division Development Committee.

A complaint has been lodged at the office of PWD Chief Engineer, he added.

The media team observed some signs of electrification in the area.

The villagers said that Bongmol village was electrified for a week after the last Christmas only to be plunged into darkness again following break down of the transformer.

The transformer taken away for repairing has not been returned till date.

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