Senior government officers on Wednesday visited the tribal hamlet of Palghar district where a woman lost her twins moments after delivery last week. Sent on a mission to understand how the government can connect the remote village via roads, the district health officer later pointed out that the tribals, particularly pregnant women, don’t give importance to their health.

District Health Officer (DHO) Dayanand Suryawanshi, Palghar Chief Executive Officer Siddharam Salimath and Mokhada taluka Sub Divisional Officer Ayushi Singh experienced on Wednesday the conditions the locals have been braving for decades. The officers and their team members walked the hilly terrain for 4 km, in heavy rain, to reach Markatwadi pada in Botoshi village. Local social activist Tukaram Pawar told mid-day, “We now hope that some initiatives will be taken by the government, as we have been suffering even 75 years after Independence.”