Villagers of Upper Klew village in Ri Bhoi gather for a meeting on Sunday. Telegraph picture

Shillong, June 10: They may be dead, but these villagers of Upper Klew village in Ri Bhoi district are still receiving PDS items, while several affluent families are proud holders of BPL cards. And all along, the real beneficiaries are deprived of the benefits of various government schemes.

The Civil Society Women’s Organisation (CSWO), a Shillong-based NGO, today led a delegation of reporters to the village, about 60km from here, to witness the plight of the villagers who had been denied the benefits of several government schemes, including PDS.

During the visit, CSWO president Agnes Kharshiing read out the names of the beneficiaries from a list provided by Ri Bhoi’s Umsning block development office in reply to an RTI query in front of the reporters and villagers.

After verification, it was found that several dead people as well as rich residents had been listed as beneficiaries of items meant for BPL families.

Moreover, no APL cards had distributed in the village though there were deserving families.

According to the RTI reply made available to Kharshiing on October 10, 2011, and verified today, the names of the dead beneficiaries were Dwelet Nongrum, Ram Sten, Browell Pyngrope, Wum Mukhim, Loi Mynsong, Nasing Maring, Ioannis Shadap, Io Marwein, Koren Rynjah and Sngi Sten.

The rich beneficiaries of PDS were Krip Sten, Jrat Warjri and Stoding Hadem.

The block development officer prepared the list of beneficiaries in accordance with the 1991 BPL census.

The 23 families of the village are a deprived lot, as they are also not getting the benefits of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), old-age pension, midday meal scheme and road connectivity. The metalled road ends near the house of headman of Klew, Pholning Makdoh.

Upper Klew village headman Helin Lawai had visited the block development office many times for getting rice and other items under PDS, but in vain.

The village has also been left out of the rural electrification scheme.

Several villagers alleged that the apathy of the Klew headman, block development officer and other local authorities was responsible for their present state of affairs, and added that the authorities continued their neglect because of illiteracy and ignorance on part of the villagers.

The villagers said the Klew headman was neglecting their needs because they had opposed his decision to sell their community land.

The villagers’ complaints have recently reached the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), which had sought a detailed report from the government.

Though Ri Bhoi additional deputy commissioner I. Mawlong had submitted a report to the government on the matter, the villagers alleged that she had never visited the village and had merely summoned headman Lawai to her office.

According to the villagers, the block development officer of Umsning, P. Khonglah, had also not taken effective steps to ensure that the 23 families got their dues.

The Klew village headman admitted that the civil supplies department was allotting various PDS items to the fair price shop in Upper Klew village without issuing BPL ration cards. “We did not get the BLP cards and the fair price shop is distributing several PDS items, including rice, sugar and kerosene, without cards,” the headman said.

The villagers said the money meant for the implementation of NREGS scheme was misused very often in the village and that the members of the village employment council forged the signatures of some beneficiaries to avail the money.

Mon Nongrum, a woman from the village, is one among many whose signature was forged.

Students from Upper Klew said they never got the midday meal at the nearby lower primary school.

Ri Bhoi deputy commissioner Akash Deep said the report of additional district magistrate I. Mawlong regarding PDS indicated that the villagers had refused to buy PDS items from the fair price shop and had demanded their own shop. The existing fair price shop is run by Rejan Mawlong.

The deputy commissioner said the names of dead people should be erased from the PDS beneficiary list.

He also stressed the need for streamlining the NREGS and midday meal schemes.