Guntur, March 10, 2023: The AP forest department has agreed to transfer about 4,500 acres of land worth over 2,000 crore in the vicinity of Nallamala reserve forest to Srisailam temple, which is the second richest temple in the state after Tirumala.
It may be recalled that the forest and the endowments departments have been warring with each other for rights over the precious land near the temple for the past five decades. Armed with some historical records which proved the ownership of the temple over the land in dispute, local legislator Silpa Chakrapani Reddy requested senior officials of the forest department to look into the issue to resolve the decades-long dispute. He contended that the dispute is benefiting neither the endowments nor the forest departments.
Subsequently, principal chief conservator of forests Y Madhusudan Reddy deployed senior officials from the estates wing and also took help from archaeology department to ascertain the facts.
Revenue officials, who recently launched a comprehensive land survey across state, also joined the studies.
According to the reports published in timesofindia.indiatimes.com a group of ministers comprising revenue minister Dharmana Prasada Rao, forest and environment minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, besides the endowments minister requested the principal chief conservator of forests to initiate further measures to formally hand over the land to the temple management.
Madhusudan Reddy, in turn, directed the local divisional forest officer to sign a formal agreement with the temple authorities in order to forward the proposal to Centre. Srisailam temple EO S Lavanna and deputy director of forest department Alan Chong Teron signed an MoU in which the forest department agreed to give up its rights over 4,500 acres of land to temple authorities.
