JOIN USMankya village in Garvale Gram Panchayat of Shanthalli hobli in the taluk is devoid of basic facilities.
Paddy and cardamom are the major crops in the village, which receives one of the highest rainfall in the region.
However, with the disease affecting the cardamom crop the yield has come down drastically in the recent years, severely affecting the lives of farmers. Further, wild animals too keep raiding the crops and the farmers in the village fail to harvest what they have cultivated.
A total of 20 families reside in Mankya village. The residents are either dependent on private vehicles or have to walk one-kilometre to reach the main road.
Without transportation facilities, the villagers carry fruits, vegetables and other agricultural produce grown by them on their heads to reach the main road. Again from there, the produce is taken to a market to sell them.
Schoolchildren in the village are the worst affected. There are 25 schoolchildren, who walk six kilometres to reach anganwadi kendra and primary and high school at Soorlabbi. The schoolchildren, who leave their house at 7 am, returned home only at 7 pm. With the wild animals often straying into the village, the residents constantly live in fear.
Though the residents have been demanding a bridge across Chemra stream that flows in the village, it has not been fulfilled.
The villagers use a log bridge during the monsoon to cross the stream. Palangappa, a resident of village, said “Though the country is fast developing, we the villagers of Mankya are still living without infrastructure facilities. We are dependent agriculture, which is also the main profession of the residents, to eke out a living.
But with wild animals menace coupled with vagaries of nature, we are incurring loss in the farming sector. Without proper connectivity, we find it difficult to sell the produce.”