Officials attack tribal locality, remove huts in wee hours

Khanapur: Throwing all rules and norms to wind, just like marauders Forest officials carried out raids on tribals and removed their huts while they were still sleeping in Mancherial district in the wee hours of Tuesday.

Officials of the Jannaram Forest department attacked and removed the huts erected by tribals in Gaddamguda, Kothur village under the Kavvala Tiger Zone in the district.

The officials removed 30 to 50 huts without any information.

For the past few years, tribals have been living in huts in compartment 308 of the Jannaram forest belt. Without any information, Forest officials came to Gaddamguda with tractors in the early hours of the morning, woke up the sleeping tribals and removed the huts.

The tribals lamented that their situation had become unbearable. They questioned why the authorities had illegally removed their huts before dawn without giving them any information. An argument broke out between the officials and the tribals, leading to tension for a while. Two tribals were detained by the Forest officials.

The Forest officials claim that the tribals had illegally erected huts on the land belonging to the Forest department and that they were removed as per the law.

The affected tribals have requested the government to allocate them places to live and provide them with support.