Guntur farmers say ‘no’ to land pooling

• Protesting farmers to rope in Medha Patkar, Vandana Siva in the struggle
• Flay government’s move to convert fertile lands into concrete-jungle

Thulluru (Guntur): The farmers from this sleepy mandal are now up in arms against the government's move to acquire their fertile lands to build the new capital. The farmers who have been opposing the idea have met here on Monday and resolved to oppose the move. They have also decided to fight against the government and protect their fertile agriculture lands from being converted into concrete jungles.

One of the farmers, Mallela Seshagiri Rao from Rayapudi village, who took the initiative to organise the farmers, blamed the government for its thoughtless move to destroy the fertile agriculture lands to build capital. While welcoming the move to locate the capital in Vijayawada-Guntur region, the farmers sought to advise the government to use waste land for the capital. He wanted the government to withdraw the proposal to convert the rich agriculture lands into concrete jungle. He said that farmers in these villages were cultivating four crops a year, including inter-crops and were feeding the State. Besides paddy, the crops like banana, jasmine, spices, vegetables, onions and leafy vegetables are cultivated here and supplied to Vijayawada, Guntur and other markets.

"The lands are valuable and fertile. We can cultivate here four crops a year even if there is no water in river Krishna. We can find water in just 20 meters deep," he said and appealed to the fellow farmers not to accept the government's move.

The Krishna Delta Parirakshana Samithi State convener, Kolanukonda Sivaji, who addressed the agitated farmers, said that he was trying to bring environmentalists Medha Patkar and Vandana Siva to Thullur mandal. He said these environmentalists would highlight the threat to the food grains if these lands were acquired for the capital. He extended total support to the farmers and asked the farmers not to give up their fight.

Meanwhile, former MP Dr Yalamanchili Sivaji who has been arguing against land acquisition for capital said that the government would not succeed in land pooling or land acquisition. "I have been writing to the State government and the National Highways Authority of India to acquire just three acres of land along the Vijayawada-Guntur national highway at Pedakakani and widen the service road. I have written to the NH project director, sent representations to Governor, made repeated requests to the Guntur district Collector in the last two years in vain. They could not move even one step forward to acquire three acres of land. How can they acquire 30,000 acres now?" he shot back.

He said that the people were finding it difficult to take diversion from the NH at Pedakakani to reach Guntur or to get on to the NH from Guntur as the service roads are too narrow. "I have asked the government and NHAI either to provide passage from the NH near MRO office instead of the existing passage given between Pedakakani and Namburu. It only just 3 acres of land to be acquired for this and the government could not take even one inch on it," he said.