ANANTAPUR: The decade-old dispute over the fixing of borders of the forest land of Obulapuram area with rich iron ore deposits between Anantapur and Ballari district continued for more than a decade. The removal of border stones and legal issues complicated the issue over the years. A move is currently on to solve the disputes and restore order.
After a survey was conducted by a central team, there was criticism of indirect support from a mining baron of Ballari and the Karnataka government to complicate the situation. However, in a strategic move to safeguard its land interests, the Karnataka government set in motion a plan to demarcate the Karnataka-Andhra Pradesh border line a few days ago.
In 2016-17, the Obulapuram mining company led by mining baron and former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy faced accusations it encroached into 400 metres from across the state border. This added to the concern about the destruction of border markers. The motive behind this encroachment was purportedly driven by the presence of high-quality iron ore.
However, after a two-year-long survey, the governments of AP and Karnataka initiated steps to fix the borders of the mining areas in reserve forests to curb encroachments.
The dispute has been existing for the past one decade, when mining barons destroyed survey stones and the borders of the forest department during their illicit mining activities and this led to CBI cases. In this context, infamous mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy faced legal expulsion from his home turf as also from Kadapa and Anantapur.
The teams of both states are currently making efforts to finalise and fix the border stones along the border areas. There are 11 mines in the reserve forests of Obulapuram in D Hirehal mandal closer to Ballari in Karnataka.’
Karnataka recently insisted on a comprehensive examination of the border, leading to the involvement of Survey of India, a central government agency. Survey of India conducted an initial demarcation, but doubts were raised about its accuracy, prompting a complaint to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
In response, the PMO has instructed a second round of demarcation as other mining owners pointed out that the survey of the contour system was not fair and it would benefit those involved in illicit activities.
Notably, amid the dispute between two mining companies -- OMC (Obulapuram Mining Company) and BIOP (Bellary Iron Ore Private Ltd) over their limits and leased areas, a big scam of illicit mining of rich ore came to light. In this context, OMC’s Gali Janardhan Reddy has been facing expulsion from Anantapur and Ballari districts.
The Karnataka government has decided to engage a team of experts from the survey department of IIT Kharagpur, who have the requisite expertise to undertake this task.
“The Kharagpur team aligns well with the government’s commitment to ensuring a precise and technically sound demarcation. The involvement of retired survey officers from the state will further enhance the advisory aspect of this critical process,” observed mining owner Tapala Ganesh from Ballari.
