The Hindu : Plea to Collector on grievance redressal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 10, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Plea to Collector on grievance redressal

TIRUPATI. Jan. 9. The A.P. State Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Commission headed by Justice Punnaiah, which wound up its three-day official tour on Thursday in the district has suggested that the District Collectors in the State hold an exclusive SC/ST grievances day every Saturday to curb growing atrocities on Dalits. Talking to mediapersons, Justice Punnaiah felt that if DSPs and mandal officials made it a point to visit a village once a week and on the third of every month, curbing of atrocities against SCs/STs would not be a problem. "By the end of the three-year term given to our panel, we will strive to banish the evil of untouchability from the State to a large extent possible," he said.

He favoured an amendment to the rule so that even an SI could investigate cases booked under `prevention of atrocities against the SC/ST Act' because the present rule that only an officer of the cadre of DSP was competent to probe the case was becoming increasingly difficult to enforce possibly due to time constraint. He regretted that though he had sent a proposal to this effect to the Central Government during his previous term, it was yet to materialise.

Panel member visit

A member of the panel, Ajmeer Raju Nayak, who visited the Hathiramji Mutt here to study its working has suggested identification of landed properties belonging to the mutt in and around Tirupati/Tirumala and elsewhere through a fresh survey by the District Collector so that forests and orchards could be developed and the sale proceeds of the produce could be used to organise free feeding for `banjara' (ST) pilgrims visiting Tirumala.

Mr. Nayak wanted nomination of intellectuals to the mutt to lend their expertise in protection of its property worth crores of rupees.

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Andhra Pradesh