WARANGAL: Incensed over the State government’s attempts to acquire their lands under the Land Pooling Scheme, farmers staged a protest on National Highway (NH) 163 between Arepally and Naskal villages in Jangaon district on Wednesday. About 100 farmers staged a sit-in on the highway and they demanded that the GO 80 (A) issued for acquisition of land be scrapped forthwith.
The agitation led to a dislocation in the movement of vehicular traffic between Hyderabad and Warangal for more than an hour. The farmers are opposed to surrendering their lands to the Kakatiya Urban Development Authority (KUDA) for laying an Outer Ring Road (ORR) and for other development works in Warangal, Hanamkonda and Jangaon districts.
On Wednesday, the farmers led by Hanamkonda BJP district president Rao Padma and BJP State spokesperson Anugula Rakesh Reddy staged the protest as a survey was going on for acquisition of their lands despite the protests they staged in the past.“We are in agony. Our lives and lands are at stake. The government is trying to take our lands by force in the name of land pooling. We demand that the GO 80 (A) be scrapped immediately,” said Thagedu Prabhakar, a farmer from Arepally village.
As the agitation continued without any end in sight, the police intervened and cleared the highway after arresting the demonstrators.Later speaking to the media, Telanagana BJP spokesperson Rakesh Reddy said: “We are demanding that the GO be scrapped. KCR is not bothered about the plight of farmers but is ready to hand over financial assistance to farmers of other States.”