By Express News Service
BHOPAL : Several houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin) in a tribal village in Madhya Pradesh have mud walls and thatched roof, contrary to the central scheme’s mission to built pucca dwellings for the rural poor. And even for these, some of the beneficiaries alleged they had to grease the palms of local authorities.
Over a dozen houses built under PMAY (G) scheme in Baiga tribe-dominated Gaura Kanhai village of Dindori district do not have concrete terrace/roof. Some of these houses don’t have cemented floor and walls either and are made of mud instead. The Baiga tribe is among the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group in MP.
Chhote Lal Baiga, one of the beneficiaries, said, “The village panchayat secretary told me to build a thatched house due to non-availability of construction material, including sand. I had to pay `14,000 as bribe to him and forest department staff for getting funds released to build the house and getting wood for the thatched roof. The panchayat secretary even took away my rooster for the panchayat CEO, and threatened to trap me in litigation otherwise.”
To show that his house had been built as a pucca house, the panchayat officials falsely geo-tagged the picture of a house built somewhere else, Chhote Lal further alleged. Even the village sarpanch’s husband, Budh Singh, alleged corruption in the scheme. “Seven beneficiaries, including my brother Prem Singh, have been forced to bribe village panchayat secretary Gend Singh Paraste. My brother had to pay Rs 30,000 to get funds released for his house,” said Singh.
According to Samnapur tehsildar Girish Dhulekar, “There is no provision of kutcha houses under PMAY(G). Even if kavelu (red roof tiles) were used, the walls have to be pucca. The allegations of village panchayat staff taking bribes will be probed.”
