In just 10 years, an entire village in Andhra Pradesh has emptied. The houses still stand, bereft of their owners, who have moved away after repeated crop failures that were dependent on rain.

Gattumeedapalle, about 125 km from Tirupati, is now a ghost village. Located in Kosuvaripalle panchayat of Annamayya district, the village sprawled across nearly 1,000 acres and had nearly 300 acres under groundnut cultivation. But the vagaries of the weather and depleting groundwater levels in the village gradually forced the people to move away. For some time, those left in the village depended on a single borewell for drinking water, but in the end, those families too moved away.

Thimmakkagari Subbi Reddy was once a farmer who cultivated groundnuts in the village. He has now moved down the hill and taken up work as a shepherd to make ends meet. He sadly says he has written off his village permanently and would not want to return. Like Subbi Reddy, several other villagers have moved seeking a livelihood. The shift began in 2015 when some families moved to Kosuvaripalle or shifted to the nearby Madanapalle town. For a while, some families stayed on, determined to make the best of it. However, with no solution in sight, they too started moving away in search of new livelihood sources. “An exodus triggered panic among the few who were finally left. Then, everyone decided to move,” says Subi Reddy.

Many of the houses were vacated, but the furniture and electronic items were left behind. Theft grew rampant when news of the empty village spread. Even the temple bell was not spared. “I would once hear the temple bell while grazing cattle. I did not think that even that would get stolen,” he says.

Most of the people who migrated from the village now support themselves by working for daily wages in nearby towns.

Only a large telephone tower watches from atop the hillock in the village that once bustled with activity.

Text by A.D. Rangarajan

Photo:
G.N. Rao

In disuse: Subbi Reddy, who owns land in Gattumeedapalle, inspects the village well that has dried up.

Photo:
RAO GN

Uninhabited abode: The dilapidated huts present a sorry state of affairs.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Desolate view: A quaint window of a house that stands empty in Gattumeedapalle.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Not welcome: Doors remain locked as families have moved to Kosuvaripalle.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Gathering dust: A handpump that was once used for drinking water.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Empty classroom: The Mandal Parishad Primary School, which has been closed down by the government for want of takers.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Fading memory: The presence of a smart meter at a house shows that the residents were till recently staying in the village.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Silent sentinel: The uninhabited Gattumeedapalle village is now home to a mobile phone tower.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Stepping away: Villagers who once stayed in Gattumeedapalle and have now settled in Kosuvaripalle.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

Left behind: A dish antenna that has not been removed even after the family moved out of the village.

Photo:
G.N. Rao

New destination: A view of Kosuvaripalle, where the families began moving to in 2015.