Telangana signs agreement with Navy for VLF station at Damagudem

Despite continuous engagement with the State government since 2010, the project faced delays in land allocation due to various pending issues.

Hyderabad: Telangana has been selected by the Indian Navy as a crucial site for its second Very Low-Frequency (VLF) communication and transmission station, set to be established in Vikarabad district.

The VLF station, used by the Navy to communicate with ships and submarines, will be located in the Damagudem forest area near Puduru of Vikarabad mandal. An agreement for the transfer of forest lands was signed between the Vikarabad DFO and the Naval Command Agency, in the presence of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and Navy officials here on Wednesday.

---

A total of 1174 hectares of forest land under Damagudem Reserve Forest has been allocated to the Navy. This marks the second VLF station in the country, following the INS Kattabomman Radar Station in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, which has served the Navy since 1990. The Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam had identified Telangana as a suitable location for the second radar station.

Despite continuous engagement with the State government since 2010, the project faced delays in land allocation due to various pending issues. Commodore Karthik Shankar, Circle DEO Rohit Bhupathi, and Captain Sandeep Das on Wednesday called on the Chief Minister to complete the formalities for land allocation.

The project was approved by the union Forests and Environment department in 2014.

The Navy paid CAMPA funds of Rs 133.54 crore for handing over forest land and another Rs 18.56 crore for land conservation measures. Legal challenges were addressed, with the court issuing orders to ensure adherence to government-specified conditions. While the forest area hosts a temple, the Navy agreed to avoid any disruption to it and also to provide access to locals, according to an official statement.

Additionally, the naval station will include a township with schools, hospitals, banks, and markets, housing around 600 naval personnel and civilians, resulting in total resident population of about 2,500 to 3,000.

Measures will be take to preserve biodiversity and ecological balance in the region through extensive planting. A road of 27 km also will be laid through the reserve forest area. The new VLF centre is expected to be completed in 2027.