Assam: 80-Yr-Old Bodo Man Crippled by Poverty Yearns for 'Achche Din'

Kokrajhar, January 22, 2019:

At a time when the BJP-led Government (in both the Centre and in the state of Assam) is blowing the trumpets of development, a poor Bodo man's plight in Kokrajhar district of Assam has highlighted the struggle of the poorer sections amid the prevailing economic malaise in Indian.

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Alindra Basumatary, an old and decrepit man aged 80 years, has seen his life thrown into disarray by poverty. A resident of Hultugaon, which falls under the Constituency of the Assam Government's 'Social Welfare' Minister Pramila Rani Brahma, Basumatary has ironically complained that the BJP Government's developmental schemes are yet to touch him and improve his condition.

Mediapersons were shocked to find this octogenarian dwelling in a tiny little shack by the roadside, where he spends entire days and nights, drawing pity from locals. Although he has a son, that son has abandoned him, and has to depend on charity from locals to fill his belly.

The Government-promised pension for old people and a place of residence under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) scheme have also eluded this poor old man.

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While speaking to the media, Basumatary has appealed the Government to take care of him in his old age. "Earlier, I was able to earn by loving with odd jobs such as cleaning the market area...and labour. However, as time has gone on, I am finding it difficult to do those same activities", he said.

Basumatary informed us that although the Government has constructed a toilet for him under the 'Swacch Bharat Abhiyan", he still needs a roof over his head and a stipend to make ends meet.

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