Dharmavaram, a name synonymous with silk sarees, has been a revenue division ever since the formation of Anantapur district 69 years ago after it was carved out of Ballari district in the erstwhile Madras State. However, with the formation of Sri Sathya Sai district, Puttaparthi has been made a revenue division, scrapping Dharmavaram.
Now, the residual Anantapur district will have an additional revenue division (Guntakal), along with the existing Anantapur and Kalyandurg.
In the G.O. Ms. No. 56 issued on January 25, Sri Sathya Sai district was announced and Dharmavaram,Puttaparthi , and Penukonda were made revenue divisions, scrapping Kadiri that was made a revenue division in 2013. However, with a change of mind in the corridors of power, G.O. Ms. no. 69 was issued within days which scrapped Dharmavaram as a revenue division and the earlier status of Kadiri was restored.
A major parts of Rapthadu Assembly constituency that is in the Hindupur parliamentary constituency. Now, with the scrapping of Dharmavaram revenue division, the areas have been been attached to Anantapur revenue division. Rapthadu MLA Thopudurthi Prakash has welcomed the move, saying that it would be closer to the centre of administration.
This has led to a host of objections and demands for new revenue divisions. Telugu Desam Party leader and Dharmavaram constituency in-charge Paritala Sriram (son of former Minister Paritala Sunitha) tried to sit on a dharna in Dharmavaram, but the police thwarted the move.
Former TDP MLAs from Madakasira constituency have led large groups, demanding the creation of Madakasira revenue division as the western-most mandals- Amarapuram, Agali Madakasira, Rolla and Gudibanda will be 106 km away from the proposed district headquarters in Puttaparthi.
Former Dharmavaram MLA (TDP) Gonundla Suryanarayana (Varadapuram Suri) collected 10,000 signatures and submitted a memorandum to the District Collector on Monday. He threatened to move Andhra Pradesh High Court against the decision to scrap Dharmavaram revenue division if the final notification did not include it in SriSathya Sai district.
Silent protest
Meanwhile, Penukonda residents led by Penukonda Paryataka Porata Samithi have decided to sit on a 5-day ‘silent protest’ from February 9, seeking district headquarters status for Penukonda and naming the new district after Sri Krishnadevaraya. A group of people from Anantapur, where the NGO Rural Development Trust has its headquarters, has demanded Anantapur district be named after Vincent Ferrer in view of his enormous contribution to the development of the district in the past 50 years.
