NADED: Waghdari, a village of 300 residents in Kinwat taluka of Maharashtra’s Nanded district, has just secured its own polling station despite having no presence on the country’s land revenue map even after 77 years of independence.
Until the last election, the villagers would trek for over two hours, braving the elements and animal attacks, to cast their votes in Jaldhara, the nearest village. But in the Nov 20 assembly polls, they will vote for the first time in their village under Kinwat constituency. This has brought renewed hopes for recognition and long-pending land rights from govt.
“Tell us where we belong” is the villagers’ refrain. They live deep in the teak forests of the Satmala range along the Telangana border. They claim Telangana abandoned them and Maharashtra never accepted them.
Local SDO and revenue officer Kavali Meghana said the EC approved the polling station in Waghdari considering the challenging hilly terrain and dense forests. “Waghdari has 190 eligible voters,” Meghana said.
Villager Datta Bhawale is still angry. “For four generations, we have called this place our home, but we have nothing to show for it from govt. Our gram panchayat is 35km away and we walk 10km to vote in any election. The nearest metalled road is a three-hour walk.”
Others complained that they don’t have land ownership papers and no drinking water pipeline. “When we sought our land documents, they told us that we are not on the (revenue) map. We told them to tell us if we were from Telangana or Maharashtra. Finally, a govt official said we belonged to Maharashtra. It means nothing if we don’t have basic rights,” another villager said.
Senior citizen Saraswati Varvate fretted that the hamlet’s only water source was a stream around 1km away. “No one comes here to campaign. We vote hoping for change. But whoever wins, we know we’re on our own,” he said.
Without these papers, they can’t get road, crop insurance, borewells or subsidies, Shankar Gaikwad, another villager, said. “Wild animals destroy our crops. On the rare occasion when we get a good yield, transporting it over rough terrain with no road, drains any small profit we make. We grow just enough to survive most of the time,” Gaikwad said.
DC Abhijit Raut has sent the land records proposal to revenue authorities in Pune. SDO Meghana cited historical reasons behind the problem. “Earlier, the area was attached to Adilabad district in Telangana during the Nizamshahi period. Last year, we conducted measurements in the village and sent the proposal to Pune. We are hopeful that within the next 4-5 months, the residents will receive what they’re entitled to from govt,” Meghana said.
Till the promise rings true, Waghdari’s battle continues. Teacher Sidheshwar Vishwanath is the villagers’ only established link to govt. He lives in Islampur 16km away and he rides his two-wheeler to Jaldhara and then walks for 2 to 3 hours either way to reach seven students in a single-room, asbestos-sheet roofed school in Waghdari.
After Std IV, children travel long distances to reach a bigger school, and many, especially girls, drop out because of the challenging commute that involves threats of possible attacks from leopards, bears and even tigers. “I just came across a bear this (Sunday) morning. I waited for it to leave before I could continue,” Vishwanath said.
Life is tougher for women. For Maya Kale, who dropped out after Std XI, the journey to school was fraught with danger. “My parents worried about me and got me married,” Maya said. Most births are at home, and in emergencies, people are carried on makeshift stretchers to Jaldhara —a two-and-a-half-hour journey to reach the nearest road.
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