Political will— the one key to Gutti Koya Conundrum Premium

HYDERABAD

Divergent voices have gained decibels after the recent murder of the forest range officer Ch. Srinivas Rao in the hands of the members of the Gutti Koya tribe while attempting to clear the encroachment of the forest land near Yerrabodu habitation of Chandrugonda mandal in Bhadradri Kothagudem district.

Of the voices, one calls the migrant tribe a violent, uncivilised, and reprobate community encroaching on the vast tracts of forest land and needs to be sent back to its native state of Chhattisgarh without mercy.

Another perceives the community as a hapless, indigent tribe desperate for survival, hence exploited by others. 

The solution for the issue holding a rather baleful portent for Telangana forest lands’ future, however, lies in political will, several others feel.

“We don’t need weapons or special power to deal with encroachers. It is solely a political problem and can be solved by the political class alone. All the political parties must declare that they would not support anyone who has encroached after 2005, the deadline for regularisation of encroachments as per the ROFR Act,” says former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) P. K. Jha.

Neither the government of the joint state nor the Telangana State government has any policy for the Gutti Koya tribe, members of which have been arriving in droves from the neighbouring state of Chhattisgarh, partly owing to the conflict there, and partly in search of opportunities.

“Initially occupying areas around Dummugudem and Charla, they slowly crossed the Godavari River and occupied forested areas of Mulugu and Bhadrachalam districts. The devastation they caused to forests is phenomenal. In my area alone, about 10,000 acres of forest land have been encroached upon by them. Each family has occupied up to 30 acres of land, and some are contesting panchayat elections too. Sometimes, the locals take advantage of them to have the forest lands cleared at a price. Thanks to their poaching, there is hardly any wildlife left here,” says DFO, Mulugu, G. Kista Goud.