RAICHUR
Thousands of residents living around Hutti Gold Mines, newly laid roads have not brought the one service they need the most, government buses. While roads have been constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), public transport remains absent in several villages, forcing people to walk long distances every day before they can even board a vehicle. For women, students, the elderly and daily wage workers, the journey begins not with a bus ride, but with a walk to the nearest village or highway.
Women from Benchaladoddi village say government buses have never reached their village. There is no government bus to our village. We have to depend on private vehicles for everything. People talk about free bus travel for women, but what is the use when no government bus comes here, they ask.Their frustration reflects the reality of several villages where public transport remains a distant dream despite government welfare schemes.
Under the Central Government’s Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, roads connecting Gadagi, Tanamakallu, Golapalli Doddi, Paidoddi, Yerajanti, Bandebhavi, Benchaladoddi Tanda, Hosagudda and nearly 190 habitations have been upgraded with blacktop roads.Residents acknowledge that road infrastructure has improved in many places. However, they question why buses have not followed the roads.Villagers from Tanamakallu say they have repeatedly submitted petitions to transport authorities, ministers and Members of Parliament seeking government bus services, but no action has been taken.They allege that the Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) has been reluctant to introduce bus services on these routes.
The absence of public transport has become a serious concern for education. Every day, hundreds of students travel from these villages to schools and colleges in Hutti, Gurugunta and Lingsugur.Without government buses, many students walk several kilometres before boarding private vehicles or requesting lifts from passing motorists. Others spend a significant portion of their family’s income on private transport.Parents fear that the lack of reliable transport affects attendance, safety and educational opportunities, especially for girls.
Residents point out that Benchaladoddi and Hosagudda, located about six kilometres from Gowduru, are still connected only by damaged mud roads in certain stretches. During the monsoon, potholes and slushy conditions make travel even more difficult.Similarly, although more than 15 villages lie close to the National Highway near Gurugunta, none of them enjoys regular government bus connectivity.
