PIN Code 591310 is the most developed village in the country under the Antyodaya scheme of the Centre. On Wednesday, Kulgod in Karnataka’s Belagavi district got ready to celebrate its special status as the results of the village ranking came in. Its score: 94 out of 100.
Subhash Benakappa Vantagodi, a farmer, said, “Pant Pradhan [Prime Minister] Narendra Modi will mention the name in his Mann Ki Baat this time, I am sure. Who knows, he may visit the village also.”
Like many other residents of the village, Mr. Vantagodi did not expect Kulgod to win the national award. “We thought we would get the Gandhi Gram Award instituted by the Chief Minister. We did not imagine the PM will give us an award in New Delhi,” he said, on returning from his fields, when The Hindu broke the news to him.
Nestled on the banks of the perennial Ghataprabha river, Kulgod is a clean, green village. It scored high on infrastructure, financial inclusion, women’s empowerment, health and education, among 47 parameters.
There are signs of prosperity: a well-equipped gram panchayat office, branches of two nationalised banks, a co-op bank, a BSNL centre, a government primary school, three private high schools, an electricity customer care centre, a PHC, a veterinary hospital, and an ATM. With a population of 7,000 people, it has 5,200 voters.
The economy is aided by agriculture, and nearly 90% of the area is irrigated by the Ghataprabha right bank canal and the Rameshwar lift irrigation project. There is a frequent bus service. Beyond Class X, girls take a bus to the government college at Koujalagi, 6 km away.
The village has been demanding a government PUC college for some years now. “But we are yet to get it,” says Basappa Nayak, a farm labourer. He laments that children of poor families are forced to drop out because of this. “We took up the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan drive seriously. People responded enthusiastically. Now our per family toilet coverage is cent per cent, as per 2011 census,” says Basavaraj Hegganayak, taluk panchayat executive officer.
Zilla Parishad CEO Ramachandran says, “There are two great advantages in working with Kulgod. The elected members are very responsible and serious about their work. Secondly, it is a compact Gram Panchayat with one village. Another significant factor is the relatively high levels of prosperity and awareness that have ensured people’s involvement in governance.”
