Hyderabad: Irrigation Minister Capt. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy has ordered a statewide crackdown on illegal occupation of irrigation department land. He called for urgent and coordinated efforts to reclaim properties worth hundreds of crores.
At a review meeting held at Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Telangana Secretariat, Reddy instructed officials from the Irrigation, Revenue, HYDRAA, and R&R departments to act swiftly. He emphasized that the government would not tolerate encroachments and told officers to fence all identified plots immediately.
To address legal challenges, Reddy asked the Attorney General to appoint a dedicated government pleader for the Irrigation Department. He pointed to encroachment cases near Gandipet and Rajendranagar involving WALAMTARI and TGERL lands. Out of 426.30 acres, 131.31 acres are encroached 81.26 acres under litigation and 50.13 acres under direct illegal occupation.
Twenty related cases are pending in district courts, and two more are in the High Court. Therefore, Reddy called for close coordination among departments to accelerate recovery. He also directed officials to create a complete inventory of the department’s assets, including land, buildings, and staff quarters.
Reddy further instructed immediate repossession of occupied residential quarters. He demanded a detailed report on the same. Additionally, he asked officials to examine the potential for installing solar power units on land along irrigation canals and near projects. The cabinet, he said, had discussed using this power for lift irrigation schemes.
Senior officials present included Special Chief Secretary Prashant Jeevan Patil, HYDRAA Commissioner A.V. Ranganath, R&R Commissioner Shivakumar Naidu, ENC Afzal Hussain, ENC Admin Ramesh Babu, WALAMTARI DG Anitha, and HYDRA SP Ashok.
Reddy reiterated that the state would recover every inch of encroached irrigation land. He said both legal and administrative tools would be used to prevent further loss.
