A village in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district was once on everyone's lips across the country. This is Medwara Kalan, the place that drew national attention after the 2012 Nirbhaya case, a crime that shook the entire nation. Back then people poured onto the streets demanding justice, and a fresh conversation began about the safety of daughters. Yet 14 years on, this very village has become a picture of neglect and decay. The roads promised so much development have crumbled into potholes, and the hospital built in Nirbhaya's name has turned into a shelter for goats. The daughters of this village have been raising their voice for the past five years, but the officials and leaders responsible remain in deep slumber.
Not a single pucca road to reach the village
Subhash Pandey, a resident, says the government gave the village a great deal after Nirbhaya's killing, but all of it now lies ignored. The hospital opened in Nirbhaya's name is today run by goats. A pharmacist turns up once in a while, and there is no trace of a doctor. At best one can find medicine for a cough or fever here. There is no arrangement at all for bandages, ointment or an IV drip. Sonu Paswan says the village has been craving a road for years, and there is not a single pucca road to come and go.
Deliveries happen on the way, lives lost without treatment
Mohan Murari Rai says that when a pregnant woman has to be taken for delivery, the baby is often born on the road itself. For want of a road, three patients have died right in front of him. Prem Narayan has demanded that a road be built. The village youth Shiv Ji Pandey says with despair that he may now have to die unmarried, because the rains are about to begin and no one is willing to come with a marriage proposal to this village. He feels his wedding will simply never happen.
Studies come to a halt for four months in the rains
Student Poonam Kumari says that during the monsoon, studies stop completely for nearly four months. The road is so bad that falling off the cycle halfway is a certainty. Amrita Kumari says the state of the road has utterly ruined their studies. According to Divyani Pandey, education has been pushed into a deep crisis. Nikki Patel says studying in the rainy season is nothing short of a challenge, with falling off the cycle on the way to school, dirtied uniforms and a breaking cycle now part of daily life.
No school in the village beyond class 5
Goldy Patel and Anchal Sharma say the elderly travel by auto with their lives in their hands, because the road has so many potholes that even the village field is better. The youngest children suffer the most, with their basic education falling apart. Divya Pandey says the real root of both education and health is the road. There is no school in this village after class 5. Three routes connect the village, and all three are unpaved tracks that shut down during the monsoon. From this alone one can imagine the conditions in which these people live.
No road, no vote: village decides to boycott the election
Chandrabali Yadav, who sells milk, says the route is so bad that his vehicle has been completely wrecked, and his own hands and legs have been broken several times. Elderly Basant Kumar Pandey remarks pointedly that along with his legs, the leaders too have gone lame. The whole village has resolved to boycott the coming election and not cast a single vote. No road, no vote has now become the village's rallying cry. It will be worth watching whether the picture of this much-talked-about Nirbhaya village finally changes, or stays exactly as it is.
