The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : ‘Steps for speedy action on tribal land disputes’

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Sep 02, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

‘Steps for speedy action on tribal land disputes’

Correspondent

Agency courts working for tribal rights: official

Official addresses visiting law students
NGOs also involved in highlighting land cases

Kakinada: Every effort is being made to expeditiously dispose of cases relating to tribal land disputes, said I. Prasad, Special Deputy Collector, Tribal Welfare. Addressing students of the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Law who visited the court of Tribal Welfare Special Deputy Collector at Rampachodavaram on Saturday to have first-hand knowledge of the tribal courts functioning, Mr. Prasad said the agency courts were striving for protecting the constitutional rights of tribals.

He said all the land in scheduled areas belonged to tribals and could not be alienated and the court would take steps for their restoration to tribals. He said the deputy Tahasildars in various mandals would file cases relating to alienated lands and the court would examine the cases and render justice to tribals. The NGOs and para-legal workers also would bring to the notice of the courts alienated tribal lands cases .As of date, he said, over 200 tribal land alienation cases were pending with the court and action was being taken for their speedy disposal.

Advocate Chukka Santhosh Kumar said tribals owing to their innocence and poverty were not able to produce proper evidence before the court, as a result over 47 percent of cases were gong against them. Even in cases won by the tribals, he said, the process for restoration of the alienated lands to them was going slow.

He said if Revenue officials worked sincerely, the land problems could be settled expeditiously rendering justice to tribals. He said several NGOs such as Laya, Sakti and AP Girijana Sangham were striving for creating awareness among tribals on their rights. P V Trinath, principal, Rajiv Institute of Law, said tribals should fight against those usurping their rights by bogus caste certificates and enjoying posts of political power. B Srinivasarao, lecturer, said that tribals should raise their voice against the injustice being done in matter of rendering proper relief to those displaced by irrigation projects.

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