Visakhapatnam January 17th, 2014: A group of concerned citizens and admirers of Alluri Seetarama Raju, a martyr in the freedom movement fondly called ‘Manyam Dora’ (Hero of Jungles), is planning to build a museum in his memory at his birthplace, Mogallu, near Bhimavaram in West Godavari district. Although Sitarama Raju was born at his maternal house at Pandrangi in Visakhapatnam district, he led his early life in his native village.

An organisation with the name Alluri Smaraka Samstha’ (ASS) was formed recently to carry out the task. Dandu Srinivasa Raju, secretary of the ASS, told  that it is proposed to collect the articles used by the martyr for display at the proposed museum.

In fact, the ancestral house of Sitarama Raju built in a sprawling 18 cents of land changed hands long ago. A retired employee of the Revenue Department who purchased a portion (4 cents) of the land reportedly expressed his willingness to give it away for the noble cause.

The museum apart, a memorial stupa, which has been nearing completion in Hyderabad, is also proposed to be unveiled in the village. “The whole project will become operational on July 4, the birth anniversary of Sitarama Raju, if everything goes off as expected”, says Mr. Srinivas Raju. Kesiraju Srinivas, known as Ghazal Srinivas for his singing ghazals, reportedly volunteered to mobilise support from captains of the industry for the noble cause.

There were no traces of the ancestral house of Sitarama Raju. Yet, architects were consulted to make out a replica for construction at the village. A statue of the martyr was unveiled in the heart of the village by his associate in the Rampa movement and former MP Gham Mallu Dora in the mid-50s.

A tomb was built at Krishna-Devi Patnam in East Godavari district in memory of a raid on a police station at the place under his leadership and the Department of Posts released a stamp featuring him in 1986.