Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet today decided to send the proposed legislation on tribal land to the Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) for further examination and necessary recommendations.
The State Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has taken this decision on the proposed legislation during its meeting held this morning.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Niranjan Pujari has informed about the decision of the Cabinet in the Odisha Legislative Assembly on 24 November.
On the basis of the recommendation made by the Tribal Advisory Council in its meeting held on 11 July 2023, the Cabinet on 14 November, 2023 had passed the proposal to amend the Odisha Scheduled Areas Transfer of Immovable Property (by STs) Regulation, 1956, Shri Pujari said.
After reviewing the above amendment in today’s meeting, the Cabinet has recommended the Tribal Advisory Council for further consideration in this regard, he said.
The Cabinet had decided to allow the ST people to transfer their land to non-tribals in scheduled areas with a written permission from the sub-collector. Two days later, the State Government withheld the decision.
However, demanding complete withdrawal of the legislation, Opposition BJP and Congress members created ruckus and stalled the House proceedings on November 22 & 23 (pre-launch session).
The BJP MLAs have also moved to Governor Raghubar Das and submitted a memorandum on this issue on Thursday.
Informing the House about other two decisions of the Cabinet, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said the panel has approved the proposal for upgrading Odisha State Workflow Automation System (OSWAS), which is an unique and one of the best digital workflow systems in the country.
This improvement initiative will take the efficiency level of governance to another higher-level under the 5T framework as well as to ensure a citizen-friendly clean system, he said.
Further, the Cabinet has also approved the proposal of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment Department to provide Rs 491.41 crore fund in five years (2023-24 to 2027-28) to Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) to carry out repair and renovation works of its buildings, Shri Pujari said.
OUAT was established in 1962 and most of its infrastructure is more than five decades old. So, it requires urgent repairs, renovations and renovations, he added.
