The first official signboard announcing the formation and naming of the new district, carved out of Anantapur, as ‘Sri Sathya Sai District’ was visible on Tuesday at Bukkapatnam, where the board of the Girls Upper Primary School was changed into the ‘Office of the District Educational Officer, Puttaparthi, Sri Sathya Sai District’.
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The final notification is expected anytime before the end of this month to ensure all the new district headquarters are functional from Ugadi (April 2).
“With the Andhra Pradesh High Court refusing to issue any interim orders on the writ petitions questioning the legality of the creation of the new districts in the State, the process seems to have gained pace,” said Penukonda Paryataka Porata Committee convener Prathap Reddy, who had been spearheading the movement seeking Penukonda as the headquarters of the new district.
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“Once the notification is issued, we will file a writ in the court, and before that we will seek the grounds of rejection of our demand submitted to District Collector Nagalakshmi Selvarajan,” Mr. Reddy said.
The Kadiri Revenue Division Officer had identified 19 buildings belonging to the government (eight), private (five), and Sri Sathya Sai Trust (six) at various locations in and around Puttaparthi. The department heads were asked to indicate the number of employees, furniture, and other infrastructure they had and that can be spared for their offices in the new district.
The process of identifying the personnel who were given the option to relocate was in progress and the setting up of new offices also started.