In the densely wooded Kudremukh National Park hills, communities that have historically lived in the forest lack the most essential facilities. Among them is the Malekudiya community in Kuthluru village, where their 30 homes lack electricity connections and water supply even today. “There is a major demand from the people here for electricity,” says Shridhara Malekudiya, a farmer in Kuthluru, which falls in Beltangadi taluka of Dakshina Kannada district, Karnataka.
About eight years ago, Shridhara bought a pico hydro generator to electrify his house. His was among 11 homes to invest in generating their own power. “The remaining houses have nothing – no electricity, no hydro power, no water supply.” Now 15 homes in the village produce hydro electricity from pico hydro machines. The small water turbine generates about 1 kilowatt of electricity – enough for a couple of bulbs in a home.
Though it is 18 years since the enactment of Forest Rights Act, basic infrastructure such as water, roads, schools and hospitals granted under the law has not been implemented for the people living in Kudremukh National Park. Electricity is just one of the amenities that the Malekudiya community, a Schedule Tribe, is struggling to get.