Govt distributes over one lakh acres of surplus land

The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday launched an ambitious project to distribute more than one lakh acres of surplus land among weaker sections of the society on a single day, an exercise being billed as first of its kind in the country.

Chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy launched the scheme at Kodangal in the Mahaboobnagar district while the ministers simultaneously started the distribution programme in their respective districts.

The 'land mela' comes against the backdrop of deadlock in the government's peace talks with naxalites who have been raking up the issue of land distribution for the poor.

The list of beneficiaries have been approved by land assignment committees set up at Assembly constituency level led by the respective legislators.

The government has already constituted a high-level committee led by municipal administration minister K Ranga Rao to monitor the process. Barring the state capital, the targets had been fixed for all the 22 districts in the state to identify surplus lands.