Puri: To expedite the process of regularisation of decades-old land issues, the State Government has decided to form a special Land Acquisition Cell in Puri for regularisation of historic land issues on a co-terminus basis.
The Special Land Acquisition Cell will function under the existing Land Acquisition Cell for Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) scheme in Collectorate, Puri under the direct supervision of the Additional District Magistrate (ADM), Revenue.
The Cell will have two retired OAS Officers, one retired Revenue Inspector, one retired Amin, two retired Junior Stenographers and two Class-IV employees.
The employees will get remuneration as per General Administration (GA) Department guidelines. They will be paid from the ABADHA scheme.
The Revenue and Disaster Management Department has informed about this decision of the Government to Puri Collector Samarth Verma.
According to sources, the State Government plans to complete the hectic exercise in a war footing way.
Last year, the Government had amended Shree Jagannath Temple Act 1954 for immediate settlement of Shree Jagannath land-related issues.
The amendment was made to remove certain restrictions therein and to delegate powers to officials at different levels to facilitate speedy disposal of cases relating to alienation of immovable properties/lands belonging to the Temple/ Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee.
The process under the act was time-consuming and took almost three to four years. Thousands of applications under the Uniform Policy introduced in 2003 for registration of the land in Puri and Khurda districts had also been pending with the State Government. But as per the amendment, the process will be decentralized and decisions will be taken at various levels, the sources said.
The decision is historic as it will pave the way for settlement of Temple lands pending for years. Those residing on Temple land will be able to get patta with the process having been simplified.
