A narrow, slippery trail climbs steeply for 100 metres before you reach the remote chowki in Jakhnikhal tehsil of Pauri Garhwal district. The outpost is a rundown two-storeyed structure, its central hall serving as a shared office for several patwaris—revenue sub-inspectors tasked with policing dozens of villages between them. A rusted lockup now holds old documents and body bags; a toilet has become a records room. A few cracked chairs flank a bench; faded maps hang loose on the walls. Roshni Sharma, 27, has been posted here just a few months. “We handle land records and police work, both,” says the young patwari, who has seven villages under her jurisdiction. “It becomes hard to do either properly.”
Read Full Story