Haritha Haaram faces resistance over lands

 

The tribals and non- tribals alike allege that forest officials were occupying the lands being cultivated by them in the name of reserved forest area under the Haritha Haaram. 

Forest officials merged 200 acres agriculture land into reserved forest in Kottur village in Nennela mandal. It is estimated that nearly 30,000 acres of land is in dispute between revenue and forest departments in the district.

 

The Adivasis have been agitating against the green drive alleging that forest officials were planting saplings under Haritha Haaram in the forest lands they have been cultivating for long time and for which they have got rights certificates under Forest Rights Act-2006. 

 

Such incidents came to light in Ganbhiraopet,  Edulapadu and Gadalapalli villages in Tiryani mandal. Adivasis also strongly opposing digging up big trenches and erecting fence in the forest areas by the forest officials alleging that forest officials were merging even the patta lands into their boundaries while separating reserved forest areas from the villages and revenue lands in the name of protecting the forests from the smugglers.

 

The Adivasis further allege that the making trenches and erecting fence was nothing but separating the Adivasis from the forest lands which they have been cultivating and demanded the government issue pattas to those lands. Adilabad district chief conservator of forest T. P Timma Reddy said they were  taking the forest lands cultivated after 2008 into their custody and have been planting  saplings in the lands belonging to forest department.

 

The district administration has failed to separate the forest and revenue lands with clear demarcations by conducting joint survey. The forest officials are occupying the lands being cultivated by the tribals and non-tribals claiming that those lands  belong to them but they were actually distributed to the poor under various schemes by the revenue department.

 

Tribals staged protest in Kerameri town against forest officials for planting saplings in their agriculture lands on Saturday. Adivasis resisted the forest officials attempted to plant saplings in 500 acres of podu land saying that they have been cultivating the lands for long time  in Kadam mandal on Friday.

 

They termed the move by the adminstration as an attempt to deprive them of their land rights and make them homeless. “Govern-ment is snatching our lands which is in our possession for a long time. We urge the government to look into the issue at the earliest,” the locals demand.