Govt to convert ‘Khasmahal’ land into freehold: Minister

Patna: Revenue and land reforms minister, Dilip Kumar Jaiswal, on Wednesday said the govt is planning to convert ‘Khasmahal’ land into freehold and launch ‘Basera-3’ to give land to those who had previously received allotment certificates (parchas) but could not secure its actual possession.Replying to a question during a press meet to highlight his department’s plans and achievements, Jaiswal said meetings will be held with landholders to seek their views on the fees payable, based on market rates. Once implemented, this decision will benefit thousands of people.The minister said the govt will distribute land allotment certificates to 30,000 poor families on the occasion of Independence Day. Altogether 71,595 landless families have been provided land under the ‘Basera-2’ campaign in the state.Jaiswal said issuing offline land records and receipts has been stopped to eliminate irregularities and the influence of middlemen in the department. A system for issuing only online receipts has now been implemented across the state.He said the state has made 1,380 acres of govt land available for 88 development projects in education, roads, energy, tourism, sports, and industry sectors. “The process of acquiring 45,748 acres of land for various projects worth approximately Rs30,000 crore is underway.

These projects include expressways, national highways, railways, airports, and industrial initiatives,” he added.Jaiswal said the department organised special joint camps and resolved 68,242 of the 81,371 cases by June 15. He said 8,054 new revenue personnel will be recruited soon to boost operational efficiency and address the shortage of human resources in the department. In a significant decision, he said the suspended revenue personnel will be deployed for land survey work instead of sitting idle. The govt’s ultimate goal is to make the state land management system fully accountable and dispute-free, he said.