ON the call given by the Telangana Struggle Forum of Mass Organisations, people took out massive rallies and staged dharnas at various district collectorates in the state for three days this month, demanding house sites, double bedroom houses and other relief for the poor. They demanded the government to give pattas on government lands occupied by the poor and sanction Rs 5 lakh each for construction of houses thereon. They also demanded the government for acquiring lands for allotment of house sites and construction of houses for the poor and sanctioning of compensation to the people affected by floods. Leaders of the CPI(M), Struggle Forum and various mass organisations participated in the rallies and addressed the dharnas and submitted memoranda to ministers and district officers explaining the demands and specific issues in the districts concerned. They demanded the state government to concede to the demands forthwith failing which the struggles would be intensified to occupy government lands and houses which were completed. Minister P Sabitha Indra Reddy and the district officers promised to look into their demands and bring the same to the notice of the government for resolution.

In Sirisilla, the police arrested the leaders of the Struggle Forum early in the morning in the name of preventive arrests, as minister K T Rama Rao was visiting Sirisilla, and later arrested several leaders who were coming to the collectorate to participate in the dharna. At Nalgonda district collectorate, the police arrested several leaders and released them later. Struggle Committee denounced these unwarranted arrests.

In Mahabubabad, obstructed by the police from going to the collectorate, the protesters staged raasta roko and dharna at Moodukotla centre. Addressing them, G Nagayya, CPI(M) Central Committee member, demanded the government identify lands in the district and sanction house sites to the poor based on the social survey conducted by it. S Veeraiah, state convener of the Struggle Forum, addressing the dharna at Medchal Malkajgiri district collectorate, said that while more than six lakh applications were received for allotment of double bedroom houses, construction of only one lakh and ten thousand houses was completed and questioned as to when construction of the remaining houses would be completed. Addressing the poor who laid seize to the Bhadradri Kothagudem district collectorate,  P Sudarsan Rao, president of the Telangana Rythu Sangham, warned that double bedroom houses constructed by the government and its lands would be occupied, if the demands of the poor are not conceded. D G Narasimha Rao, state secretary of Urban Sangham, addressing the dharna at Hyderabad district collectorate, demanded the authorities concerned to examine all the applications received in e-seva platform and at the collectorate, complete survey for identifying the eligible and issue pattas to the poor living in houses without pattas immediately. Addressing the dharna at Nalgonda district collectorate, J Ranga Reddy, state secretariat member of the CPI(M), criticised the government for constructing village nature parks, burial centres and play grounds in the lands acquired by the earlier governments for allocation of house sites to the poor. Mallu Lakshmi, state secretary of AIDWA, addressing the dharna at Suryapet collectorate, demanded the government to allot 2,500 acres of government land purchased for colonies for weaker sections in 130 villages in the past, to the eligible poor. 

Addressing the dharna at Rangareddy district collectorate, John Wesly questioned the government as to why possession of lands has not been given to the 650 poor people who were given pattas near Ramoji Film City. Dharnas were staged at the district collectorates of Nirmal, Mahabubnagar, Khammam, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Hanumakonda, Siricilla and Manchirial.