Hans News Service Sathupalli ( Khammam)

RevenueMinister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy on Thursday said implementation of the State government’s Bhu Bharati land legislation would serve as a referendum on its performance in the next elections.

Addressing a meeting of farmers on the sidelines of a land re-survey at Bethupalli revenue village in Sathupalli Assembly constituency, the Minister said the government was committed to providing permanent solutions to land-related problems and preventing irregularities in land records.

“The implementation of Bhu Bharati will be the referendum for our government’s performance in the coming elections. We said this when the law was introduced and we stand by the same commitment even today,” he said.

He said the Bhu Bharati Act was aimed at providing a permanent solution to land-related problems of farmers and ensuring protection of genuine land rights.

The Minister said nearly 6,000 acres had already been re-surveyed in Bethupalli revenue village, which has a total extent of 12,047 acres.

He said the re-survey was being conducted using modern technology, with precise coordinates and maps being prepared for each land parcel. Farmers would be given 30 days to raise objections after completion of the survey and final rights would be recorded only after resolving the grievances.

Bhudhaar cards, similar to Aadhaar cards, would subsequently be issued to landholders, he said.

Reddy directed officials to protect access roads to agricultural fields and ensure that such roads were not recorded as private land. He also ordered protection of ponds by clearly demarcating their boundaries and taking necessary measures to prevent encroachments.

The government has selected 70 villages in each district in the first phase of the re-survey and aims to complete the survey of agricultural and abadi properties across Telangana within the next 18 months, he said.

The minister warned of strict action against attempts to illegally regularise 22-A lands and said the government would not permit land grabbers to use poor people as a front to regularise illegally acquired properties.

Reddy said land was an emotional issue for farmers and not a political one, adding that protecting the interests of genuine farmers was the government’s responsibility. District Collector Divakara TS said the revenue machinery would work at the field level to examine and resolve land-related grievances in accordance with rules.