Mass migration turns Saru in Hinjili into ghost village

Bhubaneswar: At a time when all eyes are on Hinjili, represented by Odisha CM & BJD president Naveen Patnaik, things are different at Saru village in the constituency. From the first look itself, Saru village presents a gloomy look with majority of houses being locked.

The human activity is limited as most of the people here have either migrated to Mumbai, Surat or other parts of the country in search of livelihood. The Saru village is no different from a ‘ghost’ village as roads here wear a deserted look and the creepy feeling prevails throughout the year.

“Three to four members of every family have moved outside State. They only visit once a year,” said a villager.

As Hinjili happens to be the home ground of Odisha Chief Minister, ideally the village should have been a model village in terms of development. However, the village lacks basic amenities including water, electricity and even employment. This seems to have forced several people to migrate to other parts of the country in pursuit of a better life.

“As there are no irrigation facilities, we face problems in agriculture. The leaders always make promises to resolve such issues, but nothing has changed in the village so far,” alleged another villager.