The Hindu Business Line : Don't grab land, Minister tells Opposition in AP

Hyderabad, May 27 The Andhra Pradesh Government has asked the Opposition and some people's organisations not to resort to illegal occupation of land as the Government itself is well on its way to distribute land to the landless.

Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Mr Dharmana Prasada Rao, Minister for Revenue, said the State had identified 3.49 lakh acres of `assigned' land in the hands of unauthorised persons.

"The three-year-old Congress Government has taken up a massive programme of construction of houses and distributing land to the landless. There is no need for the Opposition parties and people's organisations to conduct raids, occupying lands in several parts of the State," he said.

The Minister's explanation came in the wake of `land occupation' campaign being taken up by the CPM in the last few weeks. CPM activists and people occupied land in several places erecting makeshift huts. The police resorted to lathicharge on the `land grabbers' and filed cases. Stating that the illegal occupation of land would be dealt with severely, the Minister had categorically said that there was no plan to regularise the land that was illegally occupied.

Bowing to demands from several quarters, the Government had released a list of recommendations made by the Land Committee that was headed by Mr Koneru Ranga Rao, Minister for Urban Development. He gave a copy of the recommendations to Mr Ramakrishna, a senior CPI leader. Asking the political parties and people's organisations to go through the report and come out with their suggestions. "We will discuss the recommendations and the feedback at a meeting to be held at Andhra Pradesh Academy of Rural Development on June 12," Mr Rao said.

Later speaking to the reporters, Mr Ramakrishna said the CPI opposed the Government view that there was only 3.49 lakh acres of assigned land. "We feel that the number would cross 10 lakh acres. We will do our own survey," he said.

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