The farmers from Kolleru lake area have appealed to the Central Empowered Committee that there is no development in Kolleru as even roads cannot be laid, human rights are being violated, and all the tanks on the concession and D. Form patta lands have been destroyed, and they are living like poor people despite having no employment or land.
As part of a two-day visit, a Central Empowered Committee comprising Chandraprakash Goyal, Dr. JR. Bhatt, G. Bhanumathi and Sunil Limaye reached the district on Tuesday. On the first day, they visited the villages of Kolleru, and on the second day, they received representations from the people of Kolleru at the Godavari Conference Hall of the Eluru District Collectorate. Later, a special meeting was held with the relevant departments to find out the details.
Thousands of people from Kolleru in Unguturu, Denduluru, Undi and Kaikaluru constituencies flocked to Eluru to express their views to the committee. After receiving the petitions from the people, several leaders of Kolleru region Namburi Venkataramaraju, Shivaji, and Saidu Satyanarayana questioned how it was possible to allow agriculture and fishing in the traditional way.
They said that it was the farmers who were protecting the environment and birds. They asked that the canals used for crops were not being repaired and that they should be handed over to irrigation. Stating that their livelihood depended on the committee report, they said that there was a population of three lakh people in 122 villages, most of whom were SC and BC class people.
They explained that due to the complete destruction of subsidized and society lands, there was no employment and there was also a mistake in the determination of wetlands. On this occasion, the committee members intervened and asked, “Isn’t everything agreed upon in the gram sabhas held in 1996 during the determination of the fifth contour boundaries?”
They accused the officials of telling one or two of them that they were not educated at that time and gave fraudulent reports. The committee members suggested that they submit a complaint in the form of a complaint that happened without their knowledge. Denduluru MLA Chintamaneni Prabhakar said that the forest officials are troubling the people of Kolleru and are also preventing tourism development. He demanded a permanent solution for Kolleru.
The empowered committee held a special meeting with the irrigation, pollution, Eluru Corporation and forest officials and took details. MLAs Kamineni Srinivas, Pathsamatla Dharmaraju, Collector Vetriselvi, DRO Visveswara Rao, Forest Officer Vijaya and other district officials participated in this program.
