Akram Mohammed By

Express News Service

DEGAON VILLAGE, BELAGAVI DIST: Sitting a mere two kilometres from the origin of Mahadayi river – a cause of dispute between Karnataka and Goa – residents of Degaon hamlet inside Bhimgad Reserve Forest in Belagavi district have more pressing concerns than the inter-state tussle.The river which criss-crosses the dense forest before flowing westward, sparks controversy only after it flows downstream.

Degaon, which has been part of Khanapur constituency, is a hamlet of 20-25 houses which got electricity only last year. The nearest public healthcare centre, according to the villagers, is six kilometers away and health department personnel turn up only once or twice a month.A single teacher handles five classes of twelve students in a single room of the school building. If they take any of their troubles to government offices, they are harried for not knowing Kannada; many in these hamlets speak only Konkani

and Marathi.

Speaking to TNIE, Rajshekar, a teacher at the village primary school, says that the nearest village – Hemmadaga – is reached by walking six kilometers through the reserve forest. “The nearest hospital is Khanapur, located around 29 kilometers away,” he says.Vittal, a mason, explains how villagers had to labour to improve the only kutcha road leading to Degaon. “The local MLA provided a JCB and a tipper. We repaired the road,” he says.

Language barrier

Another villager, under the condition of anonymity, says that villagers from hamlets inside Bhimgad – most of who speak only Marathi and Konkani – are often badgered in government offices. “They ask us to learn Kannada and come back,” he said.Raju Dhond, a grama panchayat member, claims that many people from these hamlets have suffered because of this.

This, he says, is among the factors that has helped independent candidates backed by Maharastra Ekikaran Samithi win elections regularly here.“We don’t have any anger against Karnataka or Kannadigas. But, our language is Marathi. We back leaders who respect this,” he says.

Reserve too soon

Having lived inside a region which was declared a reserve only in 2011, Raju is unhappy that ‘vikas’ had not reached them before that. “Now, we can’t even build a road due to regulations. Out of the seven hamlets of 1,100 voters represented by me, only two got a power supply a couple of years ago,” he says.

Punappa Namdev Patil, who is in his early twenties, says drains were completed only 20 days ago in the village. “Some of the villagers who worked for it are yet to be paid,” he says, adding that Rozgar Yojana – NREGA – does not often provide employment.

Maratha pride

Khanapur is expected to see a three-way contest between BJP, Congress and an independent candidate backed by Maharastra Ekikaran Samithi (MES). While the sitting MLA is Arvind Patil, who was backed by MES, it is not certain whether he will have MES’ support for this election. Congress is set to field Anjali Nimbalkar, wife of IPS officer Hemanth Nimbalkar. She had contested as an independent in 2013, finishing third. BJP too is yet to finalise its candidate.