BJP, CPI(M) leaders give Save Erla Cheruvu call

Hafeezpet: State BJP Executive Committee member Jnanendra Prasad and CPI(M) Serilingampally constituency in charge Shoban on Monday, after inspecting Erla Cheruvu in Madinaguda and its surroundings, gave a call to save the water body.

Prasad stated that 50 families were depending on the cheruvu by taking up fishing. He said the water body was getting polluted after drainage from apartments in Hafeezpet and its surrounding areas like Vaishalinagar, Subash Chandrabosenagar, Marthandnagar, Adityanagar, Sarovarnagar, HIG Phase II was flowing into it and killing marine life. Consequently, he pointed out that fishermen were rendered without any means of livelihood. He hit out at officials for not showing any concern to the plight of fishermen and wanted the government to show an alternative means of livelihood to them.

The BJP leader alleged that the government was wasting crores in the name of purifying the water body and enriching contractors without doing anything to benefit people. He demanded immediate action by officials to stop the flow of drainage into the Erla Cheruvu and set up a sewerage treatment plant to prevent its contamination. Otherwise, Prasad threatened to stage dharnas along with fishermen in front of the municipal and mandal offices.

Shoban alleged that the pleas/complaints of fishermen had fallen on deaf ears of officials. He demanded compensation by the government to fishermen so as to save their families. The CPI(M) leader also demanded immediate removal of death fish from the water body to avoid threat of spreading diseases to people living in its adjoining areas.

A local resident Mallesh Yadav pointed out that although the government was spending crores through the Mission Kakatiya project to develop water bodies, only a walking track was provided at Erla Cheruvu, but failed to render justice to fishermen. He alleged that their complaints to Serilingamapally MLA Arekapudi Gandhi, corporator Pujita, the municipal and mandal officials, including the RDO, Irrigation department officials, have fallen on deaf ears.

Yadav demanded immediate steps to stop the sewerage flow into Erla Cheruvu, failing which he threatened to lay siege to the residences of the MLA, the corporator and government offices along with families of the affected fishermen.

Among those who accompanied the two leaders during the inspection were fishermen's organisation president G Kishtayya, vice-president Pentayya, secretary Mallesh, representatives Anjaneyulu, Satyanarayana, Yellayya, Ashok, Prashanth, Mallesh and Kumar.