In 2012, backed by the CPI(M), the farmers from the remote Peddaganjam village had planted red flags on their land taken over for the prestigious Vaderavu and Nizampatnam Port and Industrial Corridor (Vanpic) project.
Soon, their counterparts in places such as Aluru, Devarapatnam, and Kothapatnam followed suit, emboldened by the support received from the Marxists and other parties, including the Congress and the TDP.
Former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had even gone to the extent of ploughing the Vanpic land with tractors and promising to return it to the farmers on coming to power.
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Nimmagadda arrest
But Mr. Naidu had taken no steps to fulfil the promise while in power between 2014 and 2019.
With no sign of the promised sea port, ship-building industry, and airport in sight, the farmers wanted the YSRCP government to “voluntarily” return the large tracts of land, including those assigned to the dalits and tribals, back to them.
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“We have lost hope of the project getting grounded in the wake of the reported arrest of Nimmagadda Prasad, who had promoted the venture along with Ras Al Khaimah, during the rule of Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy,” said Vanpic Vyatireka Porata Samiti convenor P. Shankar, who hails from Motupalli, a flourishing port during the medieval times.
The farmers, however, harp on the announcement of Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari that the Centre was ready to develop the port project if the State government handed over the land for the purpose.
“We hoped Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy would make a statement in the recent Assembly session on the revival of YSR’s pet project. But our hopes were belied,” said Mr. Shankar, gearing up for a protracted struggle to get back the land acquired from the farmers allegedly under duress.
‘Cancel GOs’
The government should immediately cancel the GOs issued for handing over 13,000 acres of land assigned to the weaker sections, he demanded. The displaced people had been promised employment for at least one member from each family, 25 cents of land and a house at the place of their choice, he said.
Though the farmers had occupied the land and started cultivation, they were unable to get power connection to energise their pumpsets and crop loan from the banks, Mr. Shankar lamented. “With the promised industrial project remaining a pipe dream, we are finding it hard to make both ends meet,” a farmer from Motupalli, P.V. Rama Rao, said.
“We will not rest till our lands are returned to us,” said a farmer, K. Govindu.
Price rise
The per-acre price offered at the time of acquisition was between ₹50,000 and ₹1.50 lakh. The price shot up to over ₹15 lakh in a decade, said another farmer, B. Devaiah.
“We will wage a legal battle and spearhead a people’s movement in the mandals of Vetapalem, Chinnaganjam, N.G. Padu, Ongole and Kothapatnam seeking justice,” asserted Mr. Shankar, who had been fighting for the cause of the displaced persons since 2009.