ADILABAD: Controversy is building up over construction of a new collectorate building for the Nirmal district far away from the town in a low-lying area falling within the Kocheruvu water tank area.
Significantly, following the recent heavy rains, flood waters have already inundated the region, where the building for Nirmal collectorate is being constructed. Critics are pointing out that just as the new collectorate building of Sircilla gets inundated during every rainy season, the Nirmal collectorate too will meet the same fate.
Opposition party leaders of Nirmal district say the choice of land had been forced upon the district administration by forest minister Allola Indrakaran Reddy. They say he, along with his relatives, owns large tracts of land in Yellapalli. The new Nirmal collectorate is within 1 km distance of Yellapalli, whereas the district headquarters town of Nirmal is about 10 km away.
Former MLA and AICC program implementation committee chairman Aleti Maheshwar Reddy visited the place, where the new collectorate is being constructed, opposing the construction. He alleged that the choice of land for the new collectorate has been forced upon people only to ensure that prices of lands belonging to Indrakaran Reddy and his relatives go up enormously.
Maheshwar Reddy pointed out construction of the new Nirmal collectorate on the lake bed be scrapped in long-term interests of the town. It could instead be built over nearly 60 acres of government land available at Penkatapur village on outskirts of Nirmal town. Penkatapur village is more accessible to people of Nirmal town, whereas the existing place is about 10–12 km away, he stated.
“A person will have to spend at least ₹50 as auto charges to reach the new collectorate building from Nirmal bus stand,” the AICC executive pointed out.
Local people too say there are a few water bodies, including Khajana cheruvu, Bangal cheruvu, Ramsagar cheruvu, and Geethasagar cheruvu, apart from Kocheruvu close to the new collectorate building that is coming up. Moreover, the building will be illegal, as it is being constructed within the “shikam land” of Kocheruvu.
