Malkangiri: Setting an example for others, children of Padalput village in the district took upon themselves to repair the road to their school as the villagers’ repeated pleas to the administration failed to elicit response.
Interestingly, a minor mishap on the dirt road connecting Malkangiri-Balimela main road to Majhiguda under Korakunda block motivated the children to take up the work. A few days back, when two students, riding a bicycle were going on the road to the school, they collided with a biker coming from the opposite direction.
With no fault of the children and the biker, the villagers knew that the accident took place due to the bad shape of the road which is not only narrow but also dotted with potholes and bumps.
Earlier, the villagers had appealed to the local authorities several times to lay a concrete road for the safety and security of the children. But there was no response.
In fact, sources said the road has not been repaired for the last five years. The issue was reported to the Gram Sabha, but no action was taken.
However, the school-going children of Padalput decided to put in their efforts to repair the road. They picked up spades and shovels and started levelling the ditches. Later, some women SHGs and villagers pitched in. They collected around Rs 3000 from the villagers and bought sand and gravel for the work.
Even as the road has been levelled for now, they fear that all their efforts will be washed away after monsoon sets in and have appealed to the state government to intervene.
