Aerial survey for AP capital from today

A singapore team taking it up

Vijayawada: A Singapore team is likely to undertake an aerial survey of Thulluru mandal on Wednesday. The team was to have undertaken aerial survey on Tuesday The government also announced that Minister for Urban Development P Narayana would accompany the team. But it was cancelled at the last minute.

• Team will be led by Singapore Minister Eshwaran
• TDP leaders are busy mobilising party sympathisers in Thulluru mandal to make a positive impression on the visiting officials
• Trying to rope in children of farmers to make headway

The Krishna district officials waited at the Gannavaram airport to receive the team, led by Singapore Minister Eshwaran, and the Minister. Guntur district officials remained waiting for the team at Thulluru. As the decision to defer the programme by a day came at the last minute, the officials returned disappointed.

Meanwhile, the TDP leaders are busy mobilising party sympathisers at Thulluru and some other villages to welcome the team and thus making a positive impression on the Singapore officials and get into the good books of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. The TDP leaders are devising all sorts of plans to segregate farmers’ children, who are educated, and trying to din into them the message on the Chief Minister’s “leadership qualities.”

On the other hand, the farmers in Penumaka, Undavalli and other villages under Tadepalli mandal and some farmers from Venkatayapalem, Mandadam, Rayapudi, Lingayapalem and Uddandarayapalem under Thulluru remain steadfast in their opposition to the government’s move to “snatch” their lands.

The land prices in Penumaka have crashed following the government zeroing in on Thulluru to build capital city. Earlier land price there hovered between Rs 7 crore and Rs 9 crore an acre. They are not prepared to give away their lands for Rs 1 crore an acre.

The Krishna Delta Parirakshana Samithi leader Kolanukonda Sivaji said on Tuesday the compensation being offered by the State government was not acceptable to most of the farmers. He said the Congress government had offered 1,800 square yards of land to the farmers per acre when the lands were acquired from them at Gollapudi and Jakkampudi villages where the Municipal Corporation took up housing scheme under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). He said the State government had now promised just 1,000 square yards of land in residential area and 200 to 300 square yards of land in commercial area per acre of land the farmer parted with.