SRIKAKULAM: Minister for minority welfare and IT Palle Raghunatha Reddy has directed the district revenue officer (DRO) to conduct a special drive to identity the Wakf lands in Srikakulam and submit the report directly to him at the earliest.
Addressing at a review meeting with the MLAs and district officials here Tuesday, the minister said that there were 4,600 Wakf organisations in the state and at several places the Wakf lands were occupied illegally. The government has decided to conduct a survey on all the Wakf lands in the state in order to identify illegal occupation and ensure justice to the minority community. The government has already issued orders and the district collectors have been asked to take up a survey on the Wakf lands, he added.
People from the minority community apprised the minister that there is only one minority welfare officer for Srikakulam and Vizianagaram district due to which several works have been pending.
Stating the government’s willingness to develop Srikakulam, which is one of the backward district in the state, he said that the government has announced an airport and a food park for the district. The government has also decided to complete all the pending and proposed irrigation projects on Nagavali and Vamsadhara rivers, he said and added that the pharma industry would also be developed on a priority basis, which will also generate jobs for the local youth.
Labour minister Kinjarapu Atchennaidu, MP K Rammohan Naidu, MLAs from the district and collector Gaurav Uppal were present at the meet.