Srinagar, 19 February (CNI): Amidst the drive to retrieve government land, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary Arun Kumar Mehta has directed the Finance Department officials to stop the anti-encroachment drive for the time being and complete the geo-referencing and digitization process of reclaimed land should be completed, at the same time, he has directed that the government land that has been recovered will be used for public purposes.
According to Current News of India (CNI), the Jammu and Kashmir government has stopped the campaign to remove encroachment from government land in Jammu and Kashmir and the officers have been directed to geo-referencing and digitization of the reclaimed land as soon as possible so that the reclaimed land can be used for public purposes.
Sources said that the campaign to get back the state land in Jammu and Kashmir was launched after which it was discussed in a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, In this meeting, the revenue department presented a complete report.
According to the sources, the meeting stressed that the anti-encroachment campaign should be handled carefully and the Chief Secretary directed that if any house has been demolished, details of such demolition should be compiled by the Provincial Commissioner and submitted to the Chief Secretary’s office.
In the meeting, the Chief Secretary further directed that geo-referencing and digitization of all reclaimed land should be completed as soon as possible and no further action would be taken without consolidating the actions taken so far.
Sources added that it has also been directed that the details of land acquired in the centrally administered area should be uploaded on the portal for internal verification.
The Information Technology Department is already in the process of developing a separate portal/dashboard in consultation with the Revenue Department to record specific details of all reclaimed lands and keep it in the public domain, To protect the acquired land, the Chief Secretary had directed the departments to propose their use.
The revenue department and the general administration department will monitor the allotment of the reclaimed state land for public purposes, sources said, quoting the chief secretary’s instructions.
Sources said that any department that intends to use the reclaimed land for a specific purpose like hospitals, playgrounds, bus stands, parking lots, schools, colleges, roads and industries etc. can prepare a detailed project report and inform the funding proposal during the financial year 2023-24. (CNI)