Meppadi(Wayanad): While roads across the state continue to suffer from poor maintenance and delays, a ward member in the hilly district of Wayanad has made a notable difference.

Ajmal Sajid, ward member of the 19th ward in Meppadi Panchayat, has transformed the village’s muddy footpaths into concrete roads.

Under the employment guarantee scheme, 20 roads were concreted in the ward during the last financial year, Sajid said. Even previously difficult-to-navigate paths, including those leading to Chenguttikunnu, home to victims of the Puthumala disaster, have been upgraded into proper concrete roads under his leadership.

The total cost of the project amounted to ₹1 crore, entirely funded through the employment guarantee scheme during the 2024–25 financial year. Of this, ₹1 crore was spent under the material cost component.

The achievement was made possible because the ward members and the employment guarantee workers worked shoulder to shoulder to complete the construction of 20 roads within just one year.

“It was a huge responsibility. The only thought in my mind was to fulfil the expectations that people had placed on me,” said Ajmal Sajid.

For residents who had endured years of travel difficulties, the road development has come as a great relief. In the past, patients had to be carried in chairs to reach the main road before being taken to hospitals. Today, vehicles can reach directly into their locality.