Cemetery linked to Alluri's legacy faces fresh threats

Time of India

6 hours ago

Visakhapatnam: The archaeological site in Narsipatnam town in Anakapalli district has allegedly been encroached upon by a few individuals who are constructing commercial structures on the site, even though there is a court stay order for its protection.
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The 46 cents of land was earmarked for a cemetery of British officers Scot Coward and Hyter, who were killed by the followers of revolutionary Alluri Sitarama Raju during the 1920s. However, the small piece of land remained untouched by the authorities until a decade ago, except for a few shops that came up on the land. Those shops were removed by the authorities when there was a proposal to widen the road.
Now, a few individuals have again started construction on the same land, prompting the Alluri Sitarama Raju Memorial Committee to file a petition with the legal services authority to protect the land.
Justice Shiaz Khan also visited the site 15 days ago and instructed the revenue, municipality, and archaeology departments to protect the land. However, the alleged apathy of the authorities has given room for the encroachers to raise the structures.
Interestingly, both British officers, Coward and Hyter, participated in World War I and were hailed by the British Army as fearless warriors. They were deployed to suppress the Manyam Pituri (tribal rebellion or Rampa rebellion) and were killed by the followers of Sitarama Raju at Damanapalli Ghat Road on September 24, 1922.
To bring their bodies to the Narsipatnam R and B Bungalow area, the then British collector Rutherford allegedly paid tax to Alluri Sitarama Raju, as there was no way to bring the bodies without the rebels' permission.
He cremated the bodies at the present site in survey no. 9, imposing a curfew in the entire 20 km area due to the decomposed state of the bodies and the fear of spreading plague.
The 100-year-old history lies in that cemetery, and the site is on one side of the main road in Narsipatnam town.
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Now, the 46 cents of land have shrunk to only 19 cents due to encroachments and occupations. Even after the visit of Justice Khan, private individuals have started constructing shops, and municipal authorities have allegedly not taken any action to date.
The assistant director of the archeology department R Phalguna Rao, told TOI that he met with the district collector Vijaya Krishnan, who asked him to meet Narsipatnam RDO for further action.
"The graves of the British officers are part of the history of Alluri Sitarama Raju's fight against the British. The cemetery is a witness to Alluri's revolutionary movement in the area. Unfortunately, authorities are neglecting the history. The site should be handed over to the archaeology department to protect the century-old history," the Alluri Sitarama Raju Memorial Committee representative, PV Satyanarayana, told TOI.
"Now, the authorities are saying that only 19 cents out of 46 cents will be handed over to the archaeology department. Revenue officials should protect the govt lands, but they are saying this, which is improper on their part," he alleged.