Telangana: Cultivators Oppose Planting Trees in Podu Lands
BJP MLA Palvai Harish Babu recalled that forest minister Konda Surekha had recently instructed forest officials not to plant trees on podu lands under this year’s Forest Land Retrieval programme.
Adilabad: Podu cultivators are opposing the forest land retrieval programme undertaken by the forest department, as forest staff are attempting to plant trees on podu lands that have been cultivated for a long time by Adivasis and non-tribals in various parts of the erstwhile Adilabad district.
On Monday, podu cultivators did not allow forest staff to plant trees on their podu lands in Jai Hindpur, located in Penchikalpet mandal of Komaram Bheem Asifabad district. The forest staff are trying to plant trees in the podu lands with the onset of the rains.
The forest officials were also attempting to plant trees on podu lands cultivated by Adivasis in Addala Thimmappur, Peesara, and Laxmipur in Neredigonda mandal, as well as Kannapur and Gopalpur in Sirikonda mandal of Adilabad district.
Podu land cultivators are currently preparing to sow seeds — particularly cotton — with the early arrival of the monsoon. However, forest staff are obstructing them, claiming that these lands are forest lands.
Several tribal organisations have announced a relay hunger strike at the collectorate on May 29 against the forest department’s refusal to allow them to construct Indiramma houses, Anganwadi centres, and roads in forest areas.
Raj Gond Seva Samiti state convenor Sidam Arju alleged that forest staff are wrongly claiming revenue patta lands, government-assigned patta lands, and lands under the Recognition of Forest Rights (RoFR) Act as forest lands, thereby preventing any activities on these lands in forest villages.
Sidam Arju stated that many farmers are being denied welfare scheme benefits due to ongoing disputes between the forest and revenue departments over revenue and assigned patta lands. He added that these lands were included in Part-B of the Dharani portal by the previous government.
He further noted that many Adivasi farmers are losing benefits due to land disputes in Medipelli village in Kagaznagar, Gundepelli in Penchikalpet mandal, Sushmeer in Bejjur mandal, and Devaiguda (Thoydguda) in Tiryani mandal of Komaram Bheem Asifabad district.
He demanded that the state government conduct a joint survey involving both revenue and forest officials to resolve land disputes and issue pattas for podu lands that have been long cultivated by Adivasis.
BJP MLA Palvai Harish Babu appealed to podu cultivators not to expand their lands by cutting down trees, and urged the forest department to refrain from planting trees on podu lands already being cultivated by farmers. He recalled that forest minister Konda Surekha had recently instructed forest officials not to plant trees on podu lands under this year’s Forest Land Retrieval programme.
