Give podu land pattas: Bandi

HYDERABAD: BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar on Friday asked the state government to distribute pattas for Podu lands during the state-wide Revenue Sadassus starting from July 15.

In a letter to Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, state BJP president and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar said the meetings, which are being organised and conducted by the revenue department, should also have officials from the forest department as all Podu lands are part of forest areas.

Bandi Sanjay reminded the Chief Minister that he had promised that he would sit in each village and ensure the pattas are issued and said if the Chief Minister was not in a position to do so now, he should ensure the distribution of pattas for Podu lands through officials as promised.

The BJP leader said Chandrashekar Rao had promised that he would bring with him the entire administrative machinery to ensure this happens, twice, once in November 2018, and again in July 2019.

Some three lakh applications were received by the state government after calling for fresh applications for rights over Podu lands in November 2021. Despite a Cabinet sub-committee chaired by tribal welfare minister Satyavathi Rathod being set up to go through the applications and formulate guidelines, no steps have been taken to fulfil the promise.

“The delays are causing enormous problems, both for tribals who submitted the applications and are waiting for pattas, and forest department’s field staff, who are under instructions not to allow any farming in forest areas,” Bandi Sanjay said, adding this situation was resulting in unfortunate confrontations between the two.

He urged the Chief Minister to make public all the details regarding pending Podu land rights applications, and these details must be provided for mandal and village wise, before the Revenue Sadassus begin on July 15.

If the state government does not take action to keep the Chief Minister’s promise, Bandi Sanjay warned that the issue of Podu lands will get even more complicated and could result in severe unrest among tribals in the state.