IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) WEDNESDAY, THE TWENTY FIFTH DAY OF JUNE TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO : 16233 of 2005 Between: 1 N. Savaranna, S/o Naganna R/o. Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, 2 M.Shareef Pasha S/o. Madar Baig, R/o. Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, 3 A. Beechupalli S/o. Gangulanna R/o. Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, 4 Beechupalli, S/o. Lakshmanna R/o. Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, 5 Lakshmanna S/o. Govind, R/o. Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, ..... PETITIONERS AND 1 The District Collector, Mahaboobnagar District, Mahaboobnagar, 2 Revenue Divisional Officer, Gadwal, Mahaboobnagar District, 3 Mandal Revenue Officer, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District, 4 Executive Engineer (IB Division) Manaboobnagar, Mahaboobnagar District, 5 Superintending Engineer, Irrigation Circle, Red Hills, Hyderabad, 6 Superintending Engineer, PJP Circle II, Pebbair, Mahaboobnagar District, ....RESPONDENTS Counsel for the Petitioners:Sri R.V.NAGABHUSHANA RAO Counsel for Respondents 1 to 3: GP FOR REVENUE Counsel for Respondents 4 to 6: GP FOR INDUSTRIES. The Court made the following : O R D E R: At the interlocutory stage, the writ petition itself is taken up for hearing and disposal with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties. This writ petition is filed for a Writ of Mandamus to direct the respondents to act forthwith and implement the directions issued by respondent No.1 in his proceedings dated 16-12-1998 to reduce the height of weirs in order to allow the patta holders to reclaim the lands submerged in the Kondair Pedda Cheruvu or in the alternative to direct the respondents to acquire the lands of the petitioners by paying market value. The petitioners are residents of Kondair Village, Itikyal Mandal, Mahaboobnagar District and own patta lands surrounding Pedda Cheruvu of the said Village. After construction of Priyadarshini Jurala Project, the water from distributory canals bearing Nos.31,32, 33 and 34 started getting collected in the Pedda Cheruvu tank causing submergence of the patta lands of the petitioners and others. The petitioners, evidently, approached the respondents for an appropriate action either to reduce the height of the weirs to save the patta lands from submergence or acquire the same and pay compensation to them. The respondents exchanged correspondence among them in that regard. Respondent No.2 in his letter dated 07-12-1998 addressed to respondent No.1 stated that the submerged lands and the ayacut under Pedda Cheruvu tank are included in the proposed ayacut of Priyadarshini Jurala Project and that the height of the surplus weir has to be reduced in order to get the patta lands out of submergence or the submerged lands have to be acquired. Respondent No.1 in turn addressed letter dated 16-12-1998 to respondent No.4 wherein he requested him to visit Pedda Cheruvu and take steps to reduce the level of weir and inform the action to him. Almost two years later, respondent No.6 addressed letter dated 01-06-2000 to respondent No.5 wherein he inter alia referred to the inspection made by respondent No.2, submission of his report to respondent No.1 and letter dated 16- 12-1998 addressed by respondent No.1 to respondent No.4. He requested respondent No.5 to instruct respondent No.4 to take immediate action. The grievance of the petitioners is that despite this abundance of correspondence, inter se, among the respondents, no action has materialized and the petitioners’ lands continued to be under submergence without any compensation being paid to them. By order dated 02-08-2005, this Court directed the respondents to initiate land acquisition proceedings for acquiring the lands and for payment of compensation within a period of eight weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order. It is brought to the notice of this Court, at the hearing, that despite such a peremptory direction having been given, the respondents have not taken any steps to comply with the said order and the vacate stay petition filed by them on 12-09-2005 did not appear to have been pressed by the respondents. Be that as it may, respondent No.4 filed a counter-affidavit in which he admitted all the above mentioned facts and stated that since the Government is the authority to deal with the issue, letter dated 09-09-2005 was addressed to the Principal Secretary to Government (Irrigation), I & CAD Department by the Chief Engineer and that the decision of the Government is awaited. I have perused the said letter, a copy of which is filed along with the counter-affidavit, wherein the Chief Engineer, Minor Irrigation, requested the Government to consider the request to reduce the FTL to avoid land acquisition of the submerged lands. He also suggested alternative arrangement for the registered ayacut, which will be effected on account of such reduction by providing water from Priyadarshini Jurala Project. At the hearing, learned Assistant Government Pleader for Irrigation is unable to furnish information whether the Government responded to the said letter of the Chief Engineer and issued appropriate instructions. The correspondence referred to above clearly suggests that all the authorities have unanimously concluded that either the height of the weirs shall be reduced to retrieve the patta lands from submergence or lands should be acquired. It is the sheer indifference on the part of the administration that kept the issue in suspended animation for more than three years. In my considered opinion, the authorities concerned with the matter have shown the insensitivity in redressing the just grievances of the petitioners. The inaction of the respondents has resulted in depriving the petitioners of their valuable property rights which is in violation of Article 300-A, apart from Articles 14 and 21, of the Constitution of India. For the above mentioned reasons, the writ petition is allowed. The respondents are directed to take immediate steps either to reduce the weir of Pedda Cheruvu tank and retrieve the submerged patta lands or to initiate steps for acquiring the lands under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 and pay compensation to the owners of the patta lands, which are submerged, within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY,J Dated 25th June, 2008 vrn