Madanapalle's post-fire meet draws crowds, revenue records under scrutiny
Tirupati: The public grievance programme conducted by special chief secretary (revenue) R.P. Sisodia on the fire incident at the Madanapalle sub-collector's office received a massive response on Thursday.
Hundreds of the affected people thronged the office during the four-hour programme. Sisodia heard complaints from the victims regarding land disputes of the past two to three years across 11 mandals in the Madanapalle sub-division.
Farmers and residents submitted numerous complaints regarding the Record of Rights Register (1B), Patta passbooks, online entry discrepancies, tampering of records and fraudulent land registrations.
Many grievances were of land encroachments by individuals, particularly politicians and alleged bias of revenue officials. Such instances from areas like Madanapalle, Thamballapalle, Piler and Punganur were highlighted, indicating significant irregularities in revenue matters within these regions.
Before this, Sisodia convened a meeting with collectors Sridhar (Annamayya), Sumit Kumar (Chittoor) and Venkateswar (Tirupati), along with RDOs and tahsildars. The Special CS emphasized the crucial role of accurate record-keeping in the revenue department and urged officials to maintain meticulous records in strict compliance with government regulations.
Sisodia issued specific guidelines on D-Pattas (title deeds) and said these should not be issued before 20 years. He called for surveys of existing cases. He stressed the importance of online processing for all applications received at tahsildar offices and recommended careful attention to even minor issues for effective problem-solving.
The meeting covered various topics, including Inam land registrations, 22(A) land issues, patta land details from 2020-23, land use conversion, dotted land problems and assigned land matters.
Meanwhile, YSRC MP P. Mithun Reddy denied allegations linking his family to the fire at Madanapalle subcollector's office. Speaking to the media in New Delhi, he said his political rivals were targeting him with false accusations. “My family had no involvement. We conduct their business affairs legally, and our assets are listed in election affidavits.”
Reddy warned of legal action if anyone made allegations against his family without concrete evidence. “One of the arrested persons, Anurag, belonged to the Telugu Desam.” He added, “I would immediately withdraw from politics if anyone could prove my family had taken illegal election funds.”