In Kurudu village, only six elderly people remain now. Hundreds of acres of land lie barren, and 87 families have left the village in pursuit of education.

Angul  : The desire to educate their children forced people to leave their ancestral homes. The entire village has become almost deserted. Acres upon acres of farmland have now turned into grasslands and forests. Deprived of basic facilities such as education, transportation, healthcare, and drinking water, Kurudu village under Manikjodi Panchayat in Angul district has transformed into an “abandoned village.”

Kurudu, a village surrounded by forests and hills, is located about 28 kilometers from the Angul sub-division headquarters. The total area of the village is 138 hectares, or around 350 acres. However, only three houses remain, inhabited by just six elderly people.  A Sixty-year-old resident  says that the village was not like this before. At one time, around 90 families lived here. Various crops and vegetables were cultivated throughout the year, producing tons of valuable agricultural yield. Life was once quite comfortable for the villagers.

But due to administrative neglect, the village was deprived of basic amenities like transportation, education, healthcare, and drinking water. Because of the lack of proper roads and transport facilities, the harvested crops could not reach the market. When people fell ill, they were unable to reach hospitals. With no school or anganwadi center in the village, generations growing up without education became unbearable for the residents. Gradually, with the aim of educating their children, 87 families left the village. As a result, Kurudu turned into an abandoned village.