Census officials in trouble as villagers deny information

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 13 MAY: The Malda district administration is still facing problem to conduct Census in some areas due to villagers’ resistance on the issue of their basic needs.

Though the Chanchal sub-division has been able to call off boycott from Jagannathpur village in Harishchandrapur and Dhangara and Bishanpur villages in Chanchal and started Census work there but the sub-division is facing similar non-cooperation from villagers at Basudevpur in Chanchal-I blocks.

In the last seven days the Census workers could not carry out their job within stipulated time at Basudevpur and other adjoining villages.

Following agitation in some other areas villagers of Basudevpur have boycotted Census exercise demanding electricity.

The Chanchal sub-divisional officer Mr Subho Mukherjee said: “The people of Basudevpur village are demanding electricity and decided not to lend a hand to the enumerators. The village is under the proposed Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidytikaran Yojona”.

“We have written about the matter to the district magistrate. If we can lay electric poles soon they would allow us to conduct Census. Following others agitation is being started in new areas day by day boycotting Census to demand their basic needs”, Mr Mukherjee said.

Besides Chanchal sub division, enumerators in Malda sub division are facing some typical problems.

During Census work in Kaliachak-II some villagers did not agree to provide information to the enumerators properly out of their frustration at having failed to get their names including in the BPL and other categories to get extra benefits from the government.

An enumerator at Sakurullahpur was also forced by a villager to write his name as atankabadi (terrorist) in the official papers. The enumerator finally managed the situation informing his concerned officials and police.

In English Bazaar, an enumerator was also humiliated on a different issue in a minority dominated area. Minority people demanded a Muslim enumerator for them because Hindu enumerator will make mistakes in writing names of minority people and their spellings.