Tension gripped the busy Bandlamitta area here on Tuesday as officials of the Ongole Municipal Corporation evicted ‘fake patta holders’ amid strong police presence as part of the proposal to beautify the Ooracheruvu lake.
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More than 60 small-time business people and some householders staged a noisy protest against their eviction without showing them an alternative site. The OMC had targeted poor people leaving untouched the buildings of influential persons in the Bandlamitta Circle, they contended.
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The eviction process, which was obstructed by the displaced people for some time, was resumed with the help of a posse of police led by Ongole Deputy Superintendent of Police G.Srinivasa Rao.
The eviction was stopped for a brief while to enable the displaced people to take away their belongings.
Supervising the eviction drive, Municipal Commissioner S. Venkatakrishna said “today’s eviction is only a beginning. We will continue the drive till all the land near the lake was freed of encroachment to facilitate construction of a boat house and amusement park at a cost of Rs. 5 crore,” he said.
Revenue Division Officer(RDO) K.Srinivasa Rao said after perusing the revenue records it was found that the pattas issued to 22 persons were fake.
Meanwhile, CPI(M) city secretary G.V. Konda Reddy took strong objection to the displacement of people without showing them an alternative.
It was during the previous TDP regime, pattas were issued to persons suggested by then TDP MP Karanam Balarama Krishnamurthy and then Ongole Municipal Vice-Chairman S. Rambabu and it was not correct to conclude that pattas of the displaced people were not genuine, the CPI(M) leader said.
Over 60 small-time business people and some householders stage a noisy protest against their eviction without showing them an alternative site