Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Bhatti Vikramarka has urged Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao to save the poor farmers who were not compensated while their lands were taken away for the construction of Vattem reservoir under the Palamuru-Ranga Reddy Lift Irrigation Project.
In a letter to the Chief Minister on Sunday, he said that villagers from Ankanpalli Thanda, Karukonda Thanda, Ramireddy Palli Thanda, Jeegutta Thanda and Ankanpalli lost their land due to the Vattem project and majority of these are poor people from Dalit and Tribal communities. The government took away their land but did not compensate them under the 2013 Land Acquisition Act.
He said he had visited the villages as part of his People’s March and it was unfortunate that their lands were taken away under G.O. 123 without much compensation. These villagers should get land for parting with their own land apart from employment opportunities. However, in the most inhuman way, they are being threatened by the police for seeking land for land.
Mr. Bhatti reminded the Chief Minister about his promise made on June 11, 2015, while inaugurating it that everyone would be compensated fairly and the project would be completed within 30 months. But even after eight years, not even 50% of the works have been completed. “Moreover, as the Chief Minister, you promised that project work would start only after employment is given to at least one person from every family that was sacrificing their land. But that has not happened,” he said.
He said four thandas and a village were completely lost under the project while people also lost 463 houses and 4,500 acres. They all should have received compensation under the Resettlement and Rehabilitation Package of the 2013 Land Acquisition Act. He demanded that the government extend all the benefits immediately to these poor families.
