Tension prevails after Forest officials halt Indiramma housing project in Asifabad

In Medipalli village of Sirpur (T) mandal, Forest officials stopped the construction of 75 houses under the Indiramma housing scheme, citing that the land identified by the Revenue department falls within a reserve forest.

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: The State government is facing yet another embarrassing situation after Forest officials forcibly stopped the construction of Indiramma scheme houses in the remote Medipalli village in Sirpur (T) mandal on Wednesday, claiming that the land identified by the Revenue department for the houses actually belonged to the Forest department.

This is the second such embarrassment for the government after the Jubilee Hills incident, where the Army staked claim to the land that was identified by the government for a Muslim burial ground.

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In Medipalli, tension prevailed for a while when Forest officials objected to the construction of 75 houses, which had formally commenced in the village under a pilot project of the Indiramma housing scheme.

A piece of land situated in Survey Number 2 was identified to build the houses. Beneficiaries and a local Panchayat secretary began the project by conducting the groundbreaking ceremony and performing a puja.

However, Forest officials arrived at the spot and confronted the beneficiaries, claiming that Survey Number 2 was located in a reserve forest. The beneficiaries argued with the officials for preventing them from constructing the houses that were sanctioned by the government and also were angry that officials were raising objections to their houses citing conservation of wildlife and permissions.

The villagers said Forest officials had stopped the construction of the houses four times earlier as well. Stating that they were homeless, they said they had been living in makeshift homes in the village for several decades. They forced the officials to retreat, asking them to first demarcate the revenue and forest lands.

Meanwhile, Sirpur (T) Forest Range Officer Praveen Kumar said the construction of houses would be allowed to continue only after identifying the boundaries between forest and revenue lands.

Over 900 acres of land located in Survey Number 2 belong to the Forest department and the site of the project was situated in the land, he said, adding that a meeting would be held with the local MPDO to discuss the disputed land.