VIJAYAWADA: Cracking the whip on illegal constructions and encroachments of forest lands, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Forests K Pawan Kalyan conducted an exclusive aerial survey on Thursday, exposing 76.74 acres of illegal encroachment inside the protected Mangalampeta forest lands in the Eastern Ghats.
Pawan Kalyan said the encroached lands were linked to former forest minister and senior YSRCP leader Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy. After his visit and review of the violations, he briefed Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and other Cabinet Ministers, who immediately ordered a comprehensive probe.
According to an official release, Pawan Kalyan directed officials to publish the names of all forest land encroachers on the department’s website and disclose the extent of encroachments and the status of cases against each individual. He further instructed officials to initiate strict legal action against those who grabbed forest land, without exception.
“Investigate the discrepancies in land records, including inflated Webland entries and false claims of ‘ancestral land’ inside protected forest areas. Digitise all land records to prevent manipulation and ensure transparency,” he directed officials.
“Forest lands are national assets. Those who encroach upon them, misuse them, or violate forest laws—no matter who they are—will be held accountable. The government will not tolerate the grabbing of protected forest areas or wildlife zones,” Pawan Kalyan said.
In response to his statement, Rajampet MP and YSRCP leader PV Mithun Reddy posted on X condemning the allegations of encroachment levelled against him and his family members. He demanded that Pawan Kalyan prove his allegations with facts.
“Mr Pawan Kalyan, you are good at shooting and scooting. You have done that in the past (remember the red sanders remarks made by you) and ran away after I demanded you to prove the allegations. What you have shot from your helicopter is our legitimate land, which we bought in 2000. We were not in power then. Either you are naïve or filled with hatred for my family. Will you please prove your allegations or apologise?” read his X post.
Mithun Reddy further criticised Pawan Kalyan’s remarks, explaining that details of the said land are publicly available. “Anyone can access them. Please go through them first. Inquiries have already been conducted and proved that there are no illegalities,” he added.
Later in the day, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force) PV Chalapathi Rao informed that a special committee has been constituted to investigate all cases of illegal forest land encroachments.
Citing official 1968 Gazette records, he said a total of 75.74 acres of land in the Mangalampeta forest area was designated as forest land. Out of this, 32.63 acres had been encroached upon. In the Mangalampeta forest land encroachment case, A1 has been identified as Peddireddy Mithun Reddy, followed by his father Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, his uncle Peddireddy Dwarakanath Reddy, and his mother Peddireddy Indiramma.
He stated that the encroached portions have now been reclaimed by the Forest Department and emphasised that any forest land found to be encroached in the State will be taken back.