Elderly woman in Odisha ‘forced to carry’ paralysed husband on trolley to get ration

An elderly woman in the Koraput district of Odisha was seen carrying her paralysed husband in a trolley to the godown to collect ration.

Lingu Trepeka from Champikata village under Narayanpatna block in the district is an elderly person and he is suffering from paralysis. However, as per Trepeka’s wife Tulsa, she carries her husband to the rice godown in a trolley every three months to collect their ration. As biometric verification is mandatory for the beneficiary, Tulsa is forced to carry her husband on a trolley by paying Rs 100. 

“I am forced to carry my paralysed husband in a trolley by spending Rs 100 as the dealer of the godown is refusing to give ration without my husband. We have no option left,” rued Tulsa.

In response to the allegation, Supply Assistant Abhishek Panda said that this is happening as the government has made biometric verification of the beneficiary mandatory. 

“Trepeka has not been added to the physically handicapped beneficiaries’ list. We will add his name to the list in the next cycle. We will visit the house of the beneficiary and provide him rice there by taking his thumb impression from the next cycle,” said Panda.