Hey all,
Long time!!!
Shailen and Shreyas...thanx guys for keeping me on my toes
Ok, so this blog is dedicated to the 400 villages around Godavari river. If anyone hasn't read about Godavari, go back to your geography textbooks. Hope it will give a fair idea about my experiences as an outsider to the whole episode.
Walking down the Goda memoirs !
The Godaparikrama was beyond 197 villages of Marathwada……beyond 17 days of trotting the Godavari basin and also beyond a political leader’s initiative. Godaparikrama was all about the 400 villages that submerged under water for over a period of 7 days. Incidently, heavy rains did not hit the areas that ultimately submerged, but the Maharashtra state government released excess water through the flood gates of the Jaikwadi dam.. We, the students at Mumbai University were a witness to the Parikrama and touring Godavari changed our perception in a large context towards understanding the major rural issues that need immediate attention from the Government
Initiated by Former Dy. Chief Minister, Shri Gopinathrao Munde and spearheaded by fellow BJP leaders, MLC Shrikant Joshi and MLA Pasha Patel, the out of the way Parikrama kickstarted from 31st August at Paithan taluka near Aurangabad. Keeping the politician in him aside for 17 days, Gopinath Munde became a friend, philosopher and guide and aide to the humble villagers who had lost their crops, house and other belonging for o fault for theirs. He gave a hearing ear to every complaint or plea of theirs-be it from the Sarpanch of the village or a 80 year old lady who sobbed away her mental trauma while narrating the near-death experiences.
The Parikrama traveled through five districts of Marathwada- Aurangabad, Jalna, Beed, Parbhani and Nanded. The villagers used to welcome Shri. Munde and the local MLA’s , not with huge garlands or bouquets, but with thousands of applications from the common people who would scribble their demands with the hope that here’s one man who shares our pain and would fight for us with the system. Mr.Munde really has a tough job on hand. But whoever witnessed the dilapidated sights of the houses or the washed away crops, would want to help in some manner Imagine, you barely own a 5 acre land of sugarcane and the crop gets washed away because there was water in the field upto 10 feet. Incidents on similar lines came across at most of the places we traveled. Now the poor villagers have no where to go and their only expectation is some monetary help or a piece of land where they could start afresh. Round 40 villages across the five districts demand resettlement of their villages in a secure place where they would not pose the thereat any longer.
Apart from the agricultural and the property losses, there are other crucial issues that need attention as well. Such issues only come in the picture when there is some high profile ‘neta’ comes to visit their neighbourhood. Right from the corruption that seeps in at the bureaucratic level, where the local Talathi or Tehsildar charges money ranging from Rs.50/- to Rs.200/- per villager to ensure the ‘panchanama’ (legal proceeding) is done to the condition of the road, in fact, the villages do not have constructed roads. Due to this, the villagers especially the school children have to walk for 3-4 kms to have basic primary education. The concern of load shedding for 12-16 hours still haunts the every house in the village. Hygiene and sanitation matters are not left far behind. The government do not even feel the need of providing basic toilet facilities to the villages, let alone the rehabilitation issue. The farmers and other villagers demand rehabilitation on the par with those of the earthquake victims. Gopinathrao Munde was, thus their only aide who traveled through the almost non-existing roads to visit their village. He, instinctively, blames the Maharashtra State Government for the recklessness with the system of the Jaikawadi dam.
Shri.Munde was definitely in a better position to empathize with the plight of the sufferers since he hails from the same soil. But he blatantly criticizes the Chief Minister, Vilasrao Deshmukh, who incidently, also hails from Marathwada, yet he has shown a cold shoulder to the crisis and instead opted for an aerial view of the flood hit areas. . It is a known fact in the history of Marathwada that the region has time and again been given the step=motherly treatment as compared to Vidharbha and western Mahrashtra. The approach that Shri.Munde adopted was unique. In no time, he used to connect himself with the local masses in the 197 odd villages that he paid visits to. His mantra was very straightforward-no garlands, no speeches, only listening to the pleas and empathizing their trauma. There were many women and menfolk whose spirits are dampebned by now invited him to come and stopover at their makeshift houses that were almost standing on their last legs.
We were moved by the entire crisis that struck them and prayed that these deserving farmers should get the much needed government support. One fact that was interesting to note that Munde got an overwhelming response from the Muslim community. (read the otherwise saffron dominance of BJP) especially in a village like Vazegaon in Nanded district where the 90% population is Muslim.
Sitting in the plush airconditioned Mumbai offices or residents, one can’t imagine the extent of losses the villagers around Godavari basin have experienced I the past couple of months. The task is big and the expectations are naturally rising day by day. Rehabilitation is a big issue and a long process. It, for sure. Requires immediate interference from the state and the central government but the picture seems gloomy. Gopinathrao Munde has promised welfare to the farmers who have a tinge of hope in their moist eyes. Their personal battle with the local bureaucratic heroes is on. Few ‘panchanamas’ have been done, though to no avail, while others still knock the door of the ‘Sarpanch’ or the ‘talathi’ but justice still awaits.
Even today if you travel to the village of ‘Agarnangar’ village in Gewrai taluka of Beed, you will bump into Munabi Patahn who waits with lot of hope in her eyes for the local Sarpanch to file a ‘panchnama ‘ of her cattle. Or travel to the ‘Nathparisar’ area of Paithan taluka, district Aurangabad, you shall come across the likes of Atmaram Khunde, Sangeeta Karke(13) or Kayabai Sonawne(78) who approached you thinking that you are there to do a ‘panchanama’ on their behalf and finally they shall lead a normal life and not that of a nomad. All they can do right now is pray to Godavari to stop crying………
The Godaparikrama was beyond 197 villages of Marathwada……beyond 17 days of trotting the Godavari basin and also beyond a political leader’s initiative. Godaparikrama was all about the 400 villages that submerged under water for over a period of 7 days. Incidently, heavy rains did not hit the areas that ultimately submerged, but the Maharashtra state government released excess water through the flood gates of the Jaikwadi dam.. We, the students at Mumbai University were a witness to the Parikrama and touring Godavari changed our perception in a large context towards understanding the major rural issues that need immediate attention from the Government
Initiated by Former Dy. Chief Minister, Shri Gopinathrao Munde and spearheaded by fellow BJP leaders, MLC Shrikant Joshi and MLA Pasha Patel, the out of the way Parikrama kickstarted from 31st August at Paithan taluka near Aurangabad. Keeping the politician in him aside for 17 days, Gopinath Munde became a friend, philosopher and guide and aide to the humble villagers who had lost their crops, house and other belonging for o fault for theirs. He gave a hearing ear to every complaint or plea of theirs-be it from the Sarpanch of the village or a 80 year old lady who sobbed away her mental trauma while narrating the near-death experiences.
The Parikrama traveled through five districts of Marathwada- Aurangabad, Jalna, Beed, Parbhani and Nanded. The villagers used to welcome Shri. Munde and the local MLA’s , not with huge garlands or bouquets, but with thousands of applications from the common people who would scribble their demands with the hope that here’s one man who shares our pain and would fight for us with the system. Mr.Munde really has a tough job on hand. But whoever witnessed the dilapidated sights of the houses or the washed away crops, would want to help in some manner Imagine, you barely own a 5 acre land of sugarcane and the crop gets washed away because there was water in the field upto 10 feet. Incidents on similar lines came across at most of the places we traveled. Now the poor villagers have no where to go and their only expectation is some monetary help or a piece of land where they could start afresh. Round 40 villages across the five districts demand resettlement of their villages in a secure place where they would not pose the thereat any longer.
Apart from the agricultural and the property losses, there are other crucial issues that need attention as well. Such issues only come in the picture when there is some high profile ‘neta’ comes to visit their neighbourhood. Right from the corruption that seeps in at the bureaucratic level, where the local Talathi or Tehsildar charges money ranging from Rs.50/- to Rs.200/- per villager to ensure the ‘panchanama’ (legal proceeding) is done to the condition of the road, in fact, the villages do not have constructed roads. Due to this, the villagers especially the school children have to walk for 3-4 kms to have basic primary education. The concern of load shedding for 12-16 hours still haunts the every house in the village. Hygiene and sanitation matters are not left far behind. The government do not even feel the need of providing basic toilet facilities to the villages, let alone the rehabilitation issue. The farmers and other villagers demand rehabilitation on the par with those of the earthquake victims. Gopinathrao Munde was, thus their only aide who traveled through the almost non-existing roads to visit their village. He, instinctively, blames the Maharashtra State Government for the recklessness with the system of the Jaikawadi dam.
Shri.Munde was definitely in a better position to empathize with the plight of the sufferers since he hails from the same soil. But he blatantly criticizes the Chief Minister, Vilasrao Deshmukh, who incidently, also hails from Marathwada, yet he has shown a cold shoulder to the crisis and instead opted for an aerial view of the flood hit areas. . It is a known fact in the history of Marathwada that the region has time and again been given the step=motherly treatment as compared to Vidharbha and western Mahrashtra. The approach that Shri.Munde adopted was unique. In no time, he used to connect himself with the local masses in the 197 odd villages that he paid visits to. His mantra was very straightforward-no garlands, no speeches, only listening to the pleas and empathizing their trauma. There were many women and menfolk whose spirits are dampebned by now invited him to come and stopover at their makeshift houses that were almost standing on their last legs.
We were moved by the entire crisis that struck them and prayed that these deserving farmers should get the much needed government support. One fact that was interesting to note that Munde got an overwhelming response from the Muslim community. (read the otherwise saffron dominance of BJP) especially in a village like Vazegaon in Nanded district where the 90% population is Muslim.
Sitting in the plush airconditioned Mumbai offices or residents, one can’t imagine the extent of losses the villagers around Godavari basin have experienced I the past couple of months. The task is big and the expectations are naturally rising day by day. Rehabilitation is a big issue and a long process. It, for sure. Requires immediate interference from the state and the central government but the picture seems gloomy. Gopinathrao Munde has promised welfare to the farmers who have a tinge of hope in their moist eyes. Their personal battle with the local bureaucratic heroes is on. Few ‘panchanamas’ have been done, though to no avail, while others still knock the door of the ‘Sarpanch’ or the ‘talathi’ but justice still awaits.
Even today if you travel to the village of ‘Agarnangar’ village in Gewrai taluka of Beed, you will bump into Munabi Patahn who waits with lot of hope in her eyes for the local Sarpanch to file a ‘panchnama ‘ of her cattle. Or travel to the ‘Nathparisar’ area of Paithan taluka, district Aurangabad, you shall come across the likes of Atmaram Khunde, Sangeeta Karke(13) or Kayabai Sonawne(78) who approached you thinking that you are there to do a ‘panchanama’ on their behalf and finally they shall lead a normal life and not that of a nomad. All they can do right now is pray to Godavari to stop crying………
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