Antisocials using tourism hotel for their activities

Some antisocial elements are using the tourism restaurant Haritha at Jannaram for their activities in Adilabad district.   

Sources said, such people were coming from Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Adilabad and were staying at the restaurant as tourists and gambling in the rooms, indulging in settlement of land disputes and disputes in Chit Fund.

It is learnt that some local political leaders and officials are booking rooms for such people and making special arrangements for unscrupulous elements.       

Liquor parties are being celebrated openly at the restaurant and doubts are being raised about women who come along with men on whether they are their family members or not.

Instead of boosting the eco- tourism in Kawal Tiger Reserve, illegal activities are getting a boost. Recently police raided the restaurant and took a few persons into custody while they were playing cards.

News is making rounds locally that even some police officials from Karimnagar district are frequently coming to the restaurant and settling land disputes here. Tourism officials are more interested in increasing revenue but do not bother about the illegal activities.       

Last year, a police sub-inspector of Karimnagar district had opened fire in a hotel room in Nirmal town in which a hotel server injured. It was said that the SI came to Nirmal to settle a land dispute and subsequently he was suspended from the service.

The restaurant was being run by tourism department and there is no proper supervision. The forest department’s role has become nominal though they are promoting eco-tourism in the Kawal Tiger Reserve.

K. Ranganna of Jannaram town said to their surprise the manager of the restaurant say all the rooms were booked one week ago and there was no vacancy whenever they asked for rooms for their relatives who wanted to come to Jannram to visit  forest.

He said the some of the local businessmen and government employees are booking one or two rooms and play cards on Sunday as it is a holiday for shops in Jannaram.

Leprosy patient back with family

Villagers boycott leprosy patient

Pandram Lingubai, a 45-year-old Adivasi widow, has been ostracised and forced to live in a small hut on the outskirts of her village (Kommugudem of Jannaram mandal) for six years, only because she suffers from leprosy.

The district officials have failed to cure her and Ms Lingubai is relying on traditional ayurvedic medicines purchased with her pension money.

Her son Rajender and relative Gangubai, who live in the village, bring her food every day, but they do not live with her. Kommugudem village community head Pusam Sonerao said that they did not have any objections to her return as she owned a house and land, but she should be cured first.

In rural areas, leprosy is still considered a deadly disease and people feel that those suffering from the disease (pedda rogam) should not live within the community as it is considered an ill omen.

Ms Lingubai, meanwhile, said that she had become accustomed living on her own in the agricultural fields, after the villagers evicted her. The hut she is living in had been constructed by her family long back.

She said health workers had visited her long ago and had given her some medicines. She added that doctors at the Jannaram hospitals had said that they did not have medicines for leprosy.

However, she expressed her willingness to return to the village if she was cured. Members of Human Rights Forum, led by state secretary Atram Bhujangarao, recently met Ms Lingubai and had lunch with her and touched her feet to show that leprosy was not a life threatening disease and was not contagious.

Apparently 30 years ago, a woman from the same village, who had leprosy, had committed suicide by consuming pesticide, as she was unable to withstand the pressure mounted by the villagers.

Staff install fence to keep animals at bay