VIJAYAWADA: TDP general secretary and MLC Nara Lokesh on Friday urged the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) to conduct a thorough probe into the involvement of employees and local leaders in the ‘cheating and stealing’ of rehabilitation and resettlement packages meant for the Adivasis under the Polavaram irrigation project.
In a letter sent to the CVC on Friday, Lokesh said revenue records were tampered with and bogus D-form pattas were created for lands belonging to the Adivasis. “Massive frauds worth crores of rupees were carried out in the tribal villages affected by the dam. In just one village, Rs 3 crore funds were diverted and deposited into the bank accounts of bogus evacuees at K Kothagudem. The local village revenue officers (VROs) and the ruling YSRC leaders were involved in the tampering of the revenue records. Such frauds might have taken place in hundreds of villages,” he alleged.
Lokesh informed the CVC that there was an immediate need to inquire into the widespread corruption in giving compensation to the project-affected.“Swindling of money through bogus D-Forms at K Kothagudem has been brought to the notice of the Collector of East Godavari district. But no action was initiated till date,” he added.