‘Ensure adequate compensation to Polavaram-affected families’

The CPI State Council has urged the Governor, E.S.L. Narasimhan, to direct officials concerned to ensure adequate compensation to families affected by the Polavaram project.

In a letter addressed to the Governor, CPI secretary K. Narayana said over 1.8 lakh people belonging to 46,000 families were likely to be displaced due to Polavaram. In addition, over 72,000 acres of cultivable land in seven mandals would be submerged.

The officials concerned should ensure that land to land clause was put in place in the rehabilitation benefits that should include Rs. 10 lakh cash per acre to those losing land and job to at least one person from each of the family that would be affected by the project. Steps should be taken to sanction houses at alternative sites to those whose houses would be submerged.