Visakhapatnam: Woman delivers a baby after being carried in a doli

Visakhapatnam: Trekking nine-km from Jajula Banda tribal hamlet, Koyyuru mandal, Pangi Shanti, a 31-year-old pregnant woman, was carried in a doli (makeshift stretcher) to Anakapalle for delivery.

After a four-hour-long tedious trek on Tuesday evening, her family members were able to gain access to a road and shift her to the hospital in an ambulance.

The pregnant woman was initially admitted to Narsipatnam Area Hospital. However, with her condition reported to be serious by then, she was asked to shift to King George Hospital (KGH) in Visakhapatnam. She delivered a baby girl in the wee hours of Wednesday at KGH.

The struggles of pregnant women continue for decades in tribal hamlets. Despite the governments vowing to change the rural landscape, the tribals rue that there is no such sign to improve their quality of life.

Unable to bear the officials' apathy, the tribals laid gravel roads through 'sramadanam' two years back. They made repeated appeals to the district authority to lay BT roads for them. "With no such development coming to our rescue, the recent rains have made the roads from bad to worse. Every year, we end up laying gravel roads through 'sramadanam'. We hope that the officials concerned would pay heed to our proposal at least now," laments Marri Venkat Rao, village head. Sharing their woes, tribals request the officials to pay attention to the road infrastructure in the hamlets and save them from 'doli' struggles.