Anakapalli: Tribals of Ravikamatham treak long distance for a pail of water

Anakapalli: Even as harsh summer months are coming to a close, tribals of Ravikamatham mandal continue to experience potable water woes.

Tribals of Kadagadda, Cheemalapadu panchayat in Anakapalli have been deprived of safe drinking water.

The village at Ravikamatham mandal is a home to 27 tribal families. A large part of their water needs was once dependent on the sole borewell facilitated two decades before at the village. However, with murky water coming out of the borewell, the locals now fetch water from gedda.

As a result, people at the hamlet frequently suffer from kidney ailments. “For the past six years, some of the patients have succumbed to kidney disease,” laments Vulli Devudamma, who took part in a novel protest along with the tribals demanding safe drinking water.

For the past one month, tribal women, including Malaparti Somalamma and Segge Balamma, say that the tribals were frequenting the Collector office to get their water woes resolved. “However, our representations have been ignored by the district officials. We want them to look into our issues and ensure that we get basic amenities at the village, including safe drinking water,” they say, while taking part in a protest by kneeling down on the road and carrying water containers over their heads.

Since granite mining activities are carried out close to the hamlet, the tribals here express concern over unsafe drinking water they have been using for years. The tribal families worry that their repeated pleas go unheard by the officials concerned.