The members of the Project Affected Families (PAFs) of the JVR Opencast Project (OCP-II) in Kommepalli village in Sattupalli mandal are running from pillar to post seeking allotment of suitable site at Tamaracheruvu tank in Ayyagaripeta village in the mandal under the Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) package.
The Singareni Collieries Company Limited’s JVR OCP-II mine has been designed to produce 4 million tonnes of coal per annum.
The OCP-II is estimated to have about 195.05 million tonnes of coal reserves and expected to start production soon, sources said.
The revenue authorities have proposed to acquire lands in Lankapalli village of Penuballi mandal for construction of a colony as part of the R&R plan meant for the families affected by the project.
However, the members of the PAFs belonging to Kommepalli village reportedly turned down the proposal expressing their reluctance to move far away from their native mandal.
The members led by K. Moulali submitted a memoranda to the higher authorities of the SCCL, the Revenue, and other allied government departments besides the elected public representatives seeking sanction of a site at Ayyagaripeta in their native mandal.
The house sites, houses and agricultural lands of the entire villagers of Kommepalli have already been acquired by the Revenue authorities for the SCCL’s JVR OCP-II, said Mr. Moulali.
“The site proposed by the officials at Lankapalli is not only far away from Kommepalli but also not conducive to the traditional livelihood of the villagers,” he pointed out.
“We appeal to the authorities to either allot 150-acre site at Tamaracheruvu tank in Ayyagaripeta or another suitable site situated at Sreeramnagar Colony in Kakarlapalli village in Sattupalli mandal, which are ideally suited for rehabilitation of the entire PAFs of Kommepalli,” Mr. Moulali said.
