ANANTAPUR: District unit of Communist Party of India (CPI) has asked the State Government to make public the report of Koneru Ranga Rao Committee on surplus lands and implement its recommendations immediately.

Talking to newspersons here on Thursday, district secretary of the party M.V. Ramana, deputy secretary C. Jaffer and others said the committee has identified that there were about 30 lakh acres available for distribution to the poor.

Though land reforms were initiated in 1973 in the State a majority of them were still in the control of landlords, they said.

Most of the landlords were enjoying lands on `benami' names irrespective of agitations being carried out by the Left parties from time-to-time, they said.

About 75 lakh acres of assigned, banjar, inam and seashore lands were either undistributed or in the control of landlords, they alleged.

The CPI would take up mandal-level struggles in May-June this year and distribute Government lands to the poor, if the Government fails to do so by then, they said.

`Control prices'

They are also planning to stage protests in front of mandal offices from April 25 on the Government failure to check price rise of essential commodities, including cooking gas and kerosene.

They demanded distribution of Rs. 70 crores worth essential commodities seized during raids on stock points of traders last month among the poor.

They also urged the Government to settle the issues of waiver of interest on crop loans taken during 2004 and settlement of crop insurance claims for 2006 kharif.

The CPI leaders demanded that the TDP and CPI (M) units in the district make their stand clear on the issue of GO No.3 on diversion of KC Canal quota of Tungabhadra water to PABR.

They alleged that about 35 TMC ft of Krishna water from Srisailam reservoir was being draw to the KC Canal illegally for the last several years.

`Withdraw GO'

But, Byreddy Rajasekhara Reddy of TDP and M.A. Gaffoor of CPI (M) were demanding withdrawal of the GO terming it as foregoing of right of Kurnool and Kadapa districts, the CPI leaders said. They had even taken up agitations on the issue. Thus, the two parties in the district were required to make their stand clear on the GO.

The CPI leaders further demanded speeding up Handri-Neeva works and taking up structures of the project with 100 TMC ft water capacity irrespective of the present capacity of the main canal.

They sought compensation of Rs. 5,000 per acre to the farmers who suffered losses in horticulture crops in the recent gales and hailstorms in the district.

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