HYDERABAD: BJP State president Bandi Sanjay on Sunday asked the State government not to allow forest officials to carry out Haritha Haram works in podu lands till such time they recognise the rights of Adivasis over forests by issuing pattas to them.
Warning the State government that it would be solely be held responsible for any conflicts erupting between tribals and forest officials if the podu lands issue was not resolved immediately, the BJP MP reminded Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao of his promise made in July 2019 that he wo-uld personally supervise the process giving pattas for podu lands taking the entire official machinery to tribal areas.
In his letter to the CM, Sanjay reminded that Rao had announced this on the floor of the State Assembly. He also recalled the Rao had declared during his election campaign in Mahabubabad on November 23, 2018, that if required, he would personally issue pattas for podu lands.
Despite the high-level committee chaired by the CM deciding to accept applications to give pattas for podu lands from October 2021, and to conduct surveys to scrutinise the applications in November 2021, there was no movement on this front till date, Sanjay said.
He said that 1,01,177 pattas were given in 2006 after scrutinising 1,83,252 applications and claimed that presently, around 10 lakh issues pertaining to podu lands were pending resolution in 24 districts across the State.
Sanjay said that as per the Forest Rights Act of 2006, tribals had sole rights on forest, forest produce and podu lands, and these rights were being violated by the State government. While movements for podu lands were happening in agency areas, forest officials were trying to encroach upon podu lands in the name of Haritha Haram plantation and digging up trenches, he said.