Villagers allege land encroachment near Harangi reservoir

Madikeri: Villagers have alleged that influential persons have encroached on about seven acres near Harangi reservoir and are planning to build a resort and homestay.The land forms part of nearly 50 acres of submerged area that resembles an island and has emerged as a scenic tourist spot known as ‘mutlu’.The villagers submitted a memorandum to Madikeri MLA Manthar Gowda, Kodagu DC SJ Somashekar, the Somwarpet tahsildar, and Harangi reservoir engineers, opposing the alleged encroachment.Acting on the complaint, revenue inspector Prahlad and village accountant Neha Gowda visited the spot on the tahsildar’s instructions. They inspected the acquired land and installed a board warning against encroachment.Villagers have demanded a thorough probe into the alleged encroachment and tree felling within the reservoir limits and action against those responsible.Thousands of acres of agricultural land were submerged during the construction of the Harangi reservoir in the district. In 1977, the govt made alternative arrangements for affected families at Yadaware village under Aiguru gram panchayat.Vishwanath Raje Urs, HA Nagaraju, KB Ananda, PK Ganapathy, KD Honnappa, Narkodi Vasanth, Dinesh, Padmanabha Achari, BK Viju, Madhu and Vishwanath Poojary have urged action.