Latest news with #APCZMA
Time of India
22-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
CZMA initiates legal action against Vijaya Sai's daughter
Visakhapatnam: The Andhra Pradesh Coastal Zone Management Authority (APCZMA) has filed a case in the Bheemili court against Avyaan Realtors, owned by P Neha Reddy and P Rohit Reddy — the daughter and son-in-law of former MP P Vijaya Sai Reddy — for allegedly carrying out illegal constructions along Visakhapatnam's beach road near Bheemili without obtaining coastal regulation zone (CRZ) permissions. According to APCZMA's complaint, the accused constructed a concrete wall within the CRZ limits without prior approval, violating provisions of the Environment Protection Act, 1986. Although the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation partially demolished the wall up to ground level, underground remnants remain to be cleared. This legal action follows a public interest litigation (PIL No. 53/2024) filed in the high court by Janasena corporator Peethala Murthy Yadav. In response, the court directed authorities to enforce environmental regulations and ensure removal of unauthorised structures. The court confirmed the ongoing violations and ordered immediate demolition and restoration of the affected coastal stretch. Earlier, GVMC had issued provisional and final notices to the firm, instructing the removal of the illegal structure on the seaward side. After the company allegedly failed to comply, GVMC proceeded with demolition and said that it would recover the associated costs under the AP Municipal Corporation Act, 1955. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 15 most beautiful women in the world Undo by Taboola by Taboola A central inspection team from the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change is expected to visit the site to assess the environmental impact. For the uniformed, CRZ rules, framed under the Environment Protection Act, are designed to protect coastal ecosystems by restricting construction within a designated buffer zone from the high tide line. Any development in this zone requires explicit permission from CZMA and environmental clearance. However, observers point to possible lapses in enforcement and oversight by local authorities and urban planning departments when the structure was constructed without permissions.
Time of India
30-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
Fishermen protest real estate project near Chirala beach
1 2 3 Vijayawada: Plans to develop a private real estate venture along the coast near Chirala have sparked a major controversy, with local fishermen strongly opposing the closure of the sea mouth. The agitated fishing community has threatened large-scale protests if the developers do not withdraw. The fishermen allege that the real estate firm pressurised officials to obtain land documents in violation of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms. The Lok Ayukta has also directed the district collector and the chairman of district-level CRZ committee to investigate the allegations and safeguard the coastline. Fishermen from Vijayalakshmipuram, Adavipallepalem, Danavayipeta, Kripanagaram, Tsunami colony, Ramapuram, Vadarevu, Chinna Barapa, Pedda Barapa, and Ramachandrapuram depend entirely on fishing for their livelihoods. Around 12,000 people from these 10 villages rely on the sea mouth (or C-mouth) for decades, operating approximately 1,500 boats from the natural jetty formed near the Eepurupalem straight cut. During heavy rains, agricultural run-off from upstream flows through the Eepurupalem straight cut, passing through Adavi Pallepalem and curving at the coast before merging into the sea. This naturally formed sea mouth spans over a kilometre. Last week, fishermen were shocked to find the sea mouth and adjacent sand dunes destroyed. They have accused a Guntur-based real estate firm of causing the damage in blatant violation of CRZ rules. The firm allegedly started construction of a resort by laying roads and obstructing the natural water flow with boulders, narrowing the sea mouth. "They have obstructed natural flow of water with large boulders, reducing the nearly a kilometre-wide sea mouth to just four metres by filling up the area. The district level committee under the Andhra Pradesh Coastal Zone Management Authority (APCZMA) has remained silent," alleged social activist Nagarjuna Reddy. In a petition, he alleged that the developers used heavy machinery and hundreds of tractors to flatten sand dunes over a kilometre, fill aqua ponds on patta land to encroach upon the coastline. District collector JV Murali said the administration would verify the records and act based on facts.
