On 28th November, at 4:30 pm. Young dynamic Ashish Chauhan, Uttarkashi’s District Magistrate sets out for village Osla.
The DM is accompanied by twenty odd officials from various department who four hours later, after an uphill trek arrive at their destination. The team spends the night with hundred and fifty odd families who call Osla home and were last visited by a senior officer thirteen years back.
Nestled between two hillocks, Osla, in Mori Block of Sankri Tehsil, is one amongst the many remote villages in the District. On asking why the DM chose this village, he informs us, “The area makes it into the headline for all the wrong reasons. A fire incident in February this winter, razed forty houses in Saawni village close to Osla. I saw the condition first hand then and analyse for myself how we could provide for the families here.” Giving a patient hearing to the village elders, a list of priorities was set. Topping the list was to provide basic training for fire fighting and equipping villagers with fire fighting equipment. Followed by, rigorous medical scrutiny of the inhabitants.
Two women from the settlement, one eighteen year old girl with acute protein deficiency and another thirty year old with an eye ailment were referred to the District Hospital on the spot, by immediate orders of the DM.
The trek to Osla was an eye-opener for the district administration as the District Magistrate puts it, “as I have seen the situation up-close and personal, I have a better understanding of the ground reality. Living conditions in these villages is really miserable and they really need special attention from the administration. Now I will be in a better position to divert funds from Disaster Management and MNREGA for the upliftment of the people there.”
This is not all. From the 2nd to the 6th of December a team of officers from departments such as Rural Development, Medical Department, Social Welfare Department and others will be stationed at Taluka. The team will ensure that all the requirements of the villagers such as ration cards; aadhar cards and medical needs are addressed with utmost priority.
That done! The District Magistrate of Uttarkashi has already set his goals on another village. His next mission entails a 17 kilometers trek to Jadau, the remotest village of the District in Bhagirathi Valley.
Rest assured, this is just the beginning of a promising future for the hill-folks of Jadau.
