500 families get evicted in Khammam on land govt allocated to temple

Hyderabad: For eight years, they cleared the vegetation, built their homes and settled into the land in Khammam that no one seemed interested in. On Tuesday, February 24, the authorities arrived with bulldozers to take it back.

Special forces drawn from four districts moved in on the 31-acre plot in the morning to evict about 500 families living on what is allegedly Bhodan land, or land allotted by the government to landless citizens. Authorities had issued eviction notices earlier, stating that the land was government property. As the notice period expired, the demolition began.

Protesters gathered at the Velugumatla Collectorate complex, with some sitting atop bulldozers to obstruct their movement. When the residents had reportedly requested more time to vacate their huts, the authorities continued their operation since the given period of notice had ended, leading to a scuffle between the authorities and locals

Nine families who had sought legal relief had their huts spared. However, every other hut was demolished.

Residents allege foul play

“We cleared the ground and built the huts. We braved the snakes and mosquitoes to live here,” one resident told reporters, adding that slum dwellers would consume poison if the evictions continued. Another alleged that authorities were acting against court orders, evicting residents without adequate notice.

A third resident said she and her neighbours had voted for the Congress, “as we were convinced that Revanth Anna (Chief Minister Revanth Reddy) and Senanna (Minister of Revenue, Housing, Information and Public Relations Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy) would support us.”

“This is where it has brought us to,” she said. “We never had sound sleep for the past eight years.”

The evictions came a day after the Telangana Cabinet decided to allot 20 acre of land in Khammam to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) for the construction of a temple, a function hall and a mini stadium, the costs of which would be borne by TTD.mam to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) for the construction of a temple, a function hall and a mini stadium, the cost of which would be borne by TTD.