VIJAYAWADA: As the time given by the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) in the provisional show cause notices served on the landowners of ‘unauthorised structures’ along the flood bank (Karakatta) of river Krishna ended on Friday, the owner of former Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s residence, Lingamaneni Ramesh, sent his reply stating that he had permission from the local panchayat and that he had applied for Building Penalisation Scheme (BPS). It is also learnt that he sought a personal hearing on the matter, in an apparent bid to buy more time.
According to sources privy to the matter, Ramesh, who was served notice on June 28 and was given seven working days time to reply, sent the response saying he had given his residence to Naidu in the interest of public and not with vested interests.
“In the reply, he claimed that he had gram panchayat’s permission, but hasn’t attached any proof of the same. He explained that he had leased out the building out of respect to the (then) head of the State government,” sources said.
In the reply, Ramesh also observed that a Zonal Assistant Director (who served the notice) does not have the authority to issue notices, and sought a personal hearing on the matter.
For the record, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy last month directed the APCRDA to demolish all the illegal structures, starting with Praja Vedika, built along the flood bank of River Krishna. Subsequently, the APCRDA demolished government-owned Praja Vedika, and served show cause notices on other private structures which were within 100 metres from the river, stating that unauthorised structures would be razed.
On Friday, the APCRDA received four more responses from the landowners of the structures on which notices were slapped. In total, 11 replies were received and response from a few more landowners to the APCRDA notices is still pending.