Leaders of the Adivasi Girijana Sangham, Andhra Pradesh State Committee, have demanded that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu announce in the Assembly the cancellation of agreements for hydropower projects, warning that these initiatives could displace tribal communities in Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR), Anakapalli, Vizianagaram, and Parvatipuram districts.

A roundtable meeting was organised by the Adivasi Girijana Sangham at the CITU office at Jagadamba Junction here on Sunday to oppose the proposed hand over of tribal lands to corporate groups for hydropower development.

The speakers alleged that the projects could displace around 50,000 people across 250 villages in the affected districts. They highlighted that the 5th Schedule of the Constitution guarantees tribal rights over land, forests, and natural resources in Scheduled Areas. They noted that under the 1/70 Act, the Land Transfer Regulation (LTR) Act, and the PESA (Provisions of Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, private and corporate entities are prohibited from holding land in these areas. The Supreme Court, in the 1997 Samata vs. Birla case, had similarly ruled that no project could be undertaken in tribal areas without the prior approval of the Gram Sabha.

The leaders also alleged that amendments to the Forest Rights Act by the BJP-led Central government facilitated the transfer of tribal lands to corporate groups. They accused the Chandrababu Naidu government of accelerating efforts to hand over lands in the Paderu Agency to companies such as Adani and Navayuga, thereby undermining tribal rights. According to the speakers, the TDP-led government is proceeding with agreements on hydropower projects made during the previous YSRCP administration and had issued G.O. No. 51 to increase the projects’ capacity.

The leaders further alleged that Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan was touring Agency areas and assisting in the hand over of tribal lands to corporate entities. Efforts to conduct drone surveys and mark survey stones, they claimed, were being intensified without the consent of local communities.

The participants demanded the cancellation of approvals for all hydropower projects, withdrawal of G.O. No. 51, and the registration of cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against corporate agents conducting unauthorised surveys.

Sangham general secretary Killo Surendra, president Lotha Rama Rao, and K. Satayanarana, State president of the Tribal Employees Union, were among the speakers at the meeting.