“CM sir Namaskaaram, I belong to Nirmal district. ‘Mission Bhagiratha’ tanker is being constructed close to my house. The huge tanker will supply water to the entire mandal. The land on which the tanker is being constructed, belongs to me. The house that’s collapsing is also mine. I am poor. I took loans to construct the house. After marrying off my daughter I became debt ridden and came to Bahrain.”
These are the words of Bojja Babaiah, a man who has shared his plight through a video, which is being shared widely on Facebook.
Babaih, a resident of Nagapuram village in Nirmal district laments that the government has taken over his land and house for the construction of a water tanker under the Mission Bhagiratha programme. The scheme is aimed at providing drinking water to every household.
Babaiah claims that he became debt-ridden after the construction of his house and after marrying off his daughter, owing to which he had to leave to Bahrain and work as a construction worker to repay the loans.
However, he had to fly down from Bahrain, after his wife incessantly cried and threatened of committing suicide, as their land was being taken over by the government.
In the video he says, “My wife and kids are threatening to end their lives. After my wife cried incessantly, I sought special permission from my company to return and resolve the crisis.”
Babaiah claims that after returning to the country he tried to meet several officials. However, no one paid heed to his pleas except for the Mandal Revenue Officer, who assured him of compensation and a double- bedroom house.
He says, “I made several representations to the Collector, wrote a letter to you [Chief Minister]. Please help me.”
Babaih accuses the Khanapur MLA, Ajmeera Rekha and District Collector Ilambarithi of ignoring his constant appeals for relief.
Due to the land acquisition, Babaiah’s family has been forced to shift to a rented house in Khanapur.
Speaking to TNM, Pembi Mandal Revenue Officer, N Prabakar, said, “We have assured Babaiah of compensation, and will give him a double bed-room house at the earliest. However, he is still not convinced with our assurances. So we gathered the villagers and declared in front of them that the department would prioritise his concern.”
Rubbishing the claims of neglecting the issue, Khanapur MLA, Ajmeera Rekha said that she had deliberations with the revenue department and the Mission Bhagiratha executive engineers to take necessary steps to provide relief to the victim.
“We will take up the issue with the District Collector too,” she said.
Meanwhile, Nirmal District Collector was unavailable for a comment on the