Bhubaneswar, April 26: The National Human Rights Commission has sought an action taken report from the state government on the alleged denial of basic facilities towards three river-locked villages in Aul tehsil of the coastal district.

The commission has sought the compliance within three weeks, said an official of Kendrapara district administration. The panel issued the directive acting on the petition by rights activist Sangita Swain, who sought an early end to the plight of Ekamania, Dakhinadiha and Nalapahi villages.

More than 4,000 residents of Ekamania, Dakhinadiha and Nalapahi villages in Aul tehsil are encircled by the Bramhani, Karasrota, Pathsala and the Hansua rivers and deprived of basic amenities such as road connectivity, potable water, health and educational facilities and electricity supply.

The petitioner drew the attention of the rights panel to the plights of the three "cursed" villages and sought its intervention to address these problems on priority basis.

Drawing the commission's attention to the poor educational facilities, the petition said that though a school had been set up in the area in 2007, it remained non-functional for all practical purposes. Teachers hardly come to school because of the inaccessibility of the area. The school remains locked up for most part of the year.

"Most of the villagers here live without the facility of toilet. Therefore, open defecation is a common sight in the area. Though the majority of villagers are poor, they have not been issued BPL and the ration cards. So, they are deprived of benefits of poverty alleviation and social security schemes," said the petition.

A senior official of the district administration said they would look into the problems and initiate measures to address them. "We will send an official to make a field inspection and submit a report within a specific timeframe," he said.