Kovalam Land: govt to seek report from Collector

With controversies raised over public land worth about Rs 400 crore in Kovalam being encroached by a major private hotel group, the government has decided to seek a report from the district collector on the issue.

''The district collector will be asked to look into the controvesries and file a report,'' Revenue Minister Adoor Praklash told express. When pointed out that the land adjacent to the famed Kovalam beach was worth crores, he said that any decison on the issue can only be taken after the report is got.

The Express had earlier reported about the allegations raised over the land that has not been claimed by the ITDC. Despite having documentary evidence of its ownership, the government is alleged to have no access to the land and no steps have been taken to take over the land. Apart from this, tension is also brewing in Kovalam over a land related to a more than 200 year old temple adjacent to this land with the temple authorities alleging that the private major hotel group was trying to encroach on its property and the adjacent land that belongs to the government.

The Village records, a copy of which is with Express, clearly show that an extent of 18.176 acres is still in the name of ITDC even after after 40.72 acres of land was sold. The ITDC is yet to respond to the land thagt belongs to it. As per the records the temple has about 1.50 acres of land, which has now been challenged by the Hotel group. The hotel group even got a stay for the a stretch of land that belongs to the Keezhathil Sree Mahaganapathy Temple. The Temple authorioties have already come out against the alleged move to the encroach upon thier property.

Source: The newindian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/436352/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/11-02-2015#page/17/1

KOvalam Land: tension brews up

Tension brews up in Kovalam over a land related to a more than 200 year old temple with the temple authorities alleging that a private major hotel group was trying to encroach on its property  and the adjacent land that belongs to the government.  The temple authorities allege that the recent developments will only lead to a divide in the society.   

As per the documents, the temple has about 1.50 acres of land, which has now been challenged by the Hotel group. The hotel group even managed to get a stay for the majority of the land that belongs to the Keezhathil Sree Mahaganapathy Temple.  ''The issue is related to a property that belongs to the temple for more than 200 years. All the documents show the temple has about 1.5 acres acres of land,'' temple secretary Ramachandran said.

Stating that it was a serious issue, he claimed that the hotel group does not have any right over the property as only an extent of 40. 72 acres of land, which also includes the Kovalam palace, was sold to them. ''As per the records with the Vizhinjam village office,  there are only two subdivisions in resurvey number 7 in block 14. The land of the ITDC comes in subdivision 1 and that of the temple comes in subdivision 2. ''

Apart from this, Ramachandran said that the Advocate Commission appointed by the Neyyattinkara Court had given a false report. ''In the report, the land of the temple is shown to be in resurvey 29/1. But the documents and records in the village office show that the temple and the land is in resurvey 7/2 and has about 1.50 acres. The resurvey number that is indicated by the commission is about a kilometre away from where the temple is situated,'' he said.  

Moreover, it is alleged that the ITDC was keeping silence on the remaining 20 acres of land that belongs to it after 40.72 acres of land was sold.  It is estimated that the land would cost about Rs 400 crore as per the latest market rates.  The village records clearly show that an extent of 18.176 acres is still in the name of ITDC even after a portion of the land was sold. 

Source: The Newindian Express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/434811/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/09-02-2015#page/15/1

Wayanad MC: doubts raised over land taken from Trust

The decision to take over 50 acres of land offered by a Trust for the proposed Wayanad Medical College has raised serious concern among the revenue officials who allege that it would only lead to diluting the Kerala Land Reforms Act and the Kerala Land Assignment Act. The decision is learned to have been taken in a haste without looking into the legal aspects and also defying the Land Board and Revenue department's contention that it will only create a precedence for regularisiing illegal lands held by encroachers.

Though the cabinet decided last week to take over the 50 acres of land from the 150 acres that the Trust possessed, highly placed officials fear that the decision was a move to regularise its remaining land. Though the land is being taken back, the government has not taken any decision with respect to the remaining land, which the Land Board has already stated that if a part of the land is utilised for any other purpose than for which it is exempted, then the exemption will be lost and the land will be vested with the government.

The Land Board and the revenue department had from the beginning noted that the whole land belonged to the government and no regularisation can be given. They found that the Trust had got ‘’purchase certificate’’ for the land that is only given for cultivating tenants as per the Kerala Land reforms Act. As per the land reforms Act, purchase certificate is issued only to natural Human beings and not to companies or trusts. As such the Land Board had informed that the whole land belonged to the Government.

With respect to the remaining land in possession of the trust, Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash said that a decision can be taken only after looking all legal aspects. When pointed out that the Land Board has raised objections, he said ''the trust claims to have all documents. On the remaining land, the government will have to look into all the legal issues related to it.''

Source: The Newindianexpress

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/425278/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/26-01-2015#page/5/1

Fresh row over Kovalam Land

The controversial Kovalam Palace land has once again come under the scanner with the government, despite having documentary evidence of its ownership, not taking over about 20 acres of land worth Rs 400 crore.   

The village records show that an extent of 18.176 acres in block 14, resurvey number 7/1 in Vizhinjam, is still in the name of ITDC even after a portion of the land was sold to a hotel group. Though in the ownership of ITDC, the government is alleged to have no access to the land, which is again becoming controversial.  

During the sales deed, it is alleged that the government had not gone through the Land procedures. When a part of the land was sold to a hotel group,  the government is alleged to have not demarcated the government land from the whole extent, thus in a way losing the prime land to private players.  

As per records with the Vizhinjam village office, resurvey number 7 in block 14 from which the land was sold to the hotel group had a total extent of of 46.18 acres. Of this, the Hotel group was handed over 26.567 acres in resurvey number 7/1-1. A religious place also holds land to an extent of 1.43 acre. And the remaining 18.176 acres is still in the name of ITDC in the Thandaper register.

From the village records, it is clear that when the controversial land was sold to the hotel group, the government has not done 'subdivision' of the land, which was mandatory when giving pattayam (title deed) to government lands. It is quite evident from the Village officials that there exists no subdivision record with them. It is necessary that the village office maintains the subdivision record once it involves handing over public lands to individuals or others. Subdivision is to be made in order to demarcate the boundary and any government land can be sold only after the boundaries of the government land is demarcated.

Source: The New Indian express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/418081/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/16-01-2015#page/4/1

Kerala stern on encroachers; to take back all lands in illegal possession of HML

At last the Kerala government has taken a stern step against encroachers in the state, especially with the Special Officer for Land Resumption M G Rajamanickam serving notice to Harrisons Malayalam Ltd to vacate 29,185 acres of land spread over Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam and Idukki districts. Apart from this, the government is also for recovering the other stretches of lands, illegally held by the company in the different parts of the state.

It is estimated that HML are in the illegal possession of about 60,000 acres of land. Though several probes have concluded that the HML was in the possession of lands that belonged to the government, no government had taken a firm step against the company until the High Court ruled that that the state government was vested with necessary powers under Kerala Conservancy Act to retrieve the land.

Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash said that all the lands that are to be taken back are government land and the company had fabricated documents. He made it clear that the special officer was appointed based on a High Court order. Before serving the eviction notice, the special office had inspected all the four districts and verified the documents.

The Minister also said that the company had sold 8,147 acres in the four districts from where the company has been asked to vacate. He also said that the company was misleading the people by placing advertisements, which amount to contempt of court. The advertisements have been given by HML Vice president (Legal) V Venugopal, against whom the vigilance had recommended a case after a preliminary inquiry found evidence of forgery of documents and survey maps with the Plantation Majors.

Kerala Govt for massive drive against excess land

With the charitable institutions, trusts, religious and caste based institutions and commercial establishments reportedly having excess land to the tune of about 1.5 lakh to 2 lakh acres of land across the state, the government is for launching a massive drive for identifying the excess land in their possession and to retrieve them.

In the case of land given to the Public Sector Units, the government has given directions to take steps to retrieve the land that has not be utilised by the concerned PSUs. It is learned that a meeting, which was chaired by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy last week, had directed the State Land Board to list out the lands that are in excess with the various charitable institutions, trusts, religious and caste based institutions and commercial establishments. The land Board was also asked to initiate ceiling cases against those who have violated the rules and to take steps to take back the land that is in excess.

Highly placed sources said that christian missionaries topped the list of excess land, which is estimated to come around 75,000 acres to 1 lakh acres. The Hindu organisations are said to have about 50,000 to 75,000 acres and the Muslim organisations to be having about 40,000 acres to 50,000 acres of excess land. They also said that the caste based organisations also have violated the rules and have excess land to the tune of about 75,000 acres. Apart from this, charitable institutions and trusts have also lands beyond their permissible possession, which is said to come to about 30,000 acres. However, it has to be noted that the government does not have a proper proper data regarding the land in possession with these organisations, institutions and trusts.

As per the KLR Act, exemption should be availed for the land that is in excess, which is being used for any public purpose. But the officials said that most of the charitable institutions, religious/caste based institutions and others have not yet availed such exemption and they continued to buy lands in different parts of the state.

As a first step, the officials are learned to have been asked to collect details of excess lands in the possession of charitable institutions, trusts, religious and caste based institutions and commercial establishments.

source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/369887/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/07-11-2014#page/4/1

Govt Mega show for buying land from private holders when enough land in stock

Conveniently ignoring the thousands of acres of government land illegally held by private individuals and institutions, the Revenue Department is gearing up for a mega bash, Bhoomigeetham, in Kochi to raise money for buying private land for its ambitious 'Zero Landless' project.

Despite retrieving government land, which may come to 5000 to 10,000 acres of land in each district as per revenue sources, the government has become a laughing stock with the mega show titled ‘Bhoomigeetham’ to be held first at Ernakulam on August 31 and later at every district headquarters. According to revenue sources, about 2,500 acres of public land that could be taken back are spread over Nedumangad, Palode and Ponmudi regions in Thiruvananthapuram district, about 4,000 acres in  Nelliyampathy and Chittor areas in Palakkad. In Munnar and Devikulam areas in Idukki, more than 5,000 acres are in the illegal possession of many. The same is with Wayanad, which according to unofficial records  stands at about 4,000 acres of illegal possessions.  

Lands that have completed lease period and those that violated lease agreement, encroached lands, surplus lands that are not entangled in legal or other issues, Escheat lands (land which has no inheritors) and Bought-in-Land (authority of land that lies with the various departments) could have been earmarked for providing titles deeds to the landless. The government is conducting a Mega Show at a time when even surplus lands are being allotted in the name of private institutions. The officials maintain that the government does not have the courage to take back the land from major encroachers.  

The officials also alleged that the government by not retrieving land in the illegal possessions for such an ambitious project was only helping land grabbers. Instead of buying land from private holders, the money collected from the mega shows could have been used for building houses for the landless, the said and added it could have saved the face of the government.   

However, Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash said that the Mega show was conceived, aimed at the participation of the entire society in the zero land less project. ''There can be many criticisms about conducting such a show. The money that is collected  through the mega shows will be used for the Zero Landless project,'' he said. 

Noting that identifying land was the first priority of the government, Prakash said that only 10,000 acres of land was now needed as per the records for providing land to the applications received.  And here the officials note that if the government was stern, 10,000 acres was not that difficult. 

source: The New Indian express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/327941/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/28-08-2014#page/5/1

Land Acquisition Act: Draft Rules given to State

The National Centre for Land Governance (NCLG), a Central Government initiative under the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances, has submitted to the state government draft rules for the newly introduced Land Acquisition Act. Though the Centre had introduced the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act in January, the state government had not yet framed the Rules that had led to many issues related to land acquisition for many of the development projects.

The NCLG submitted the draft Rules to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Revenue secretary Satyajeeth Rajan on Wednesday. In the rules framed, the focus has been given to social impact assessment study and social impact management plans, sources said. The Rules contain rehabilitation package to the land owners, price fixation of lands, acquisition procedures and a lot more, they said.

Source

The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/298510/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/04-07-2014#page/5/1 

Dream comes true for former Kerala Soccer skipper ten long years of wait

Dream comes true for Former Football Skipper Sylvester Ignatius, who has been for the last ten years dreaming of a home in the piece of land promised by the government soon after he led the team to lift the Santosh Trophy for the state in 2004. All bottlenecks have been cleared with respect of the land provided to him at Valiyathura near here.

The Thiruvananthapuram district collector has been asked to earmark the five cents of land already allotted to him out of 20 cents of land that was given as Perpetual lease (Kuthakapattam). The Collector was also asked to retrieve the remaining 15 cents of land and attach it to the Land Bank. The government gave the direction after a meeting was held here last week, in which officials from the revenue department and the district administration were present.




Though the government has taken such a stand, Ignatius is still doubtful to begin the construction of the home. ''I am still concerned if I could start the construction. As there is no stay for the land, the construction can be started. But if the person who got the Kuthakapatam again goes to the court, then what will happen?,'' he said. 

Source: The New Indian Express
http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/283968/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/06-06-2014#page/4/1

Aranmula Airport: Govt bid to sell puramboke land

Even though the government said that it would not challenge the Green Tribunal decision in Aranmula Airport issue, they were all out to help the KGS Group, promoters of the Airport, by proposing to sell 40 acres of puramboke land in the project area.

In a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, it was decided that the puramboke land in the project site having an approximate extent of 40 acres will be sold for the purpose of the project at a price  fixed by the revenue Department as per prevailing market rate.

The Minutes of the meeting convened on February 7 also said that the application for exemption for land ceiling for the proposed land in the project area should be examined on the same line as was done for the land for Medical College in favour of Abraham Kalamannil. In the meeting, it was said that the government had the power to give exemption for such projects for public purpose.

Pointing out that puramboke land was public property and the government could not sell the land, highly placed officials said purumboke land are generally given away for public purpose. As per the Kerala Land Assignment Act, puromboke lands cannot be assigned as such. However, the government has the powers to assign purumboke lands only for public purpose, which the officials said was not involved here.  ''It is only for a business purpose that the purumboke land is being sold, which is against the law,'' they said. 

Source: the New Indian express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/282928/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/04-06-2014#page/4/1

Aranmula: Govt for giving exemption to over 200 acres of land

The state government, which is so adamant in supporting the controversial private Airport at Aranmula despite widespread protests citing several legal impediments pertaining to land acquisition and environment disasters , has decided to go ahead with granting exemption to more than 200 acres of land that the airport promoters -- KGS group had acquired as part of the project.

The Revenue department has been asked to make a proposal in the cabinet with regard to providing exemption to the land acquired by the private company inviloation of the Land Reforms Act. The decision was taken at a meeting held on Friday, which was attended by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, Pathanamthitta MLA K Shivadasan Nair, Revenue Principal Secretary Sathyajeeth Rajan and top officials from the Land Board and Commissionerate of Land Revenue.

In the meeting it was also decided to file a counter affidavit against the Green Tribunal order that stayed the construction of the airport until further orders, highly placed sources said. The meeting observed that the government had the discretionary powers to give exemption for the project under the Land Reforms Act and also from the Wet land and Paddy Conservation Act, the sources said.

Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/225885/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/08-02-2013#page/4/1

Land for Sreechitra Institute; protest brews against acquisition

Protest is brewing in the outskirts of the city – Ayiroorpara , Mangattukonam and Shastavattam area – against the government's move to acquire land for the Sree Chitra Thirunal Institute of Medical Sciences.

The people in the area are agitated against the alleged unilateral move, stating that the inhabited areas in Ayiroorpara , Mangattukonam and Shastavattam is being acquired for the project even when hundreds of acres of uninhabited land lies adjacent to the proposed project region. They also blame the councillor for having allegedly given the consent for acquiring their land without their knowledge.

Thulaseedharan Mangattukonam, convenor of the Action Council alleged that the people in the area knew about the acquisition only days after the notification period ended. ''Everything was done in secrecy. The councillor had not intimated about the the acquisition,'' he said and added that more than 1000 families will be affected.

Pointing out that the area was filed with paddy fields and was a wet land, he said that the government was acquiring the land in the area when a vast stretch of land was lying adjacent. 

Source: The Newindian Express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/220617/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/29-01-2014#page/17/1

Hidden Agenda Behind HML meet

A time when the government has served a showcause notice on Harrisons Malayalam Ltd for retrieving about 20,000 acres of land in their illegal possession and Vigilance filing criminal cases against company officials for forging documents, the revenue secretary has convened a joint meeting of the company representatives and the vigilance team, which is alleged to backtrack the government's entire initiative. 

The meeting has been convened, flouting the rules as the government was hearing the views of the persons against whom a criminal case was in vogue, highly placed sources said. The company representatives have been called for a meeting in the presence of the Vigilance that had registered an FIR against them, which only aggravated the situation, they said and raised doubts if it was not an attempt to scuttle the vigilance inquiry against the company and its officials. Moreover, the officials who were directly involved and who were aware of the entire issue were not called for at the meeting, they added.

In a major development, the government has served a showcase notice on the HML with 

respect to retrieving about 20,000 acres of land in their illegal possession. Special officer M G Rajamanickam who probed the irregularities with regard to HML land in four districts – 

Pathanamthitta, Kollam, Kottayam and Idukki – served the notice under rule 9, section 12 of 

the KLC Act, giving the company authorities one month's time to reply. 

The notice was served after the special team constituted under Rajamanickam completed the inspection of the 25630.94 acres of land that comes under the 1600/1923 document. The special team was appointed based on the High Court judgement, which had permitted the government to reclaim the land which is allegedly in their illegal possession by implementing provisions of the Land Conservancy Act.

Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/218450/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/24-01-2014#page/4/1

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/2267891

Soccer star's dream home in legal tangles

Former skipper of the strate football team Sylvester Ignatius, who led the squad that won the prestigious Santosh Trophy in 2004, has waited for nearly a decade now to fulfill his dream of having a home of his own at Valiyathura near Trivandrum..

Though the Land was promised to him in 2004 soon after the  victory, he was only allotteed land last year. Adding further insult to the injuries already meted out to him, the land allotteed to him is now caught in a legal tangle.


Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/212429/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/12-01-2014#page/1/1

Kerala Govt clueless about consequences of amending Land Assignment Rules

The Kerala government that has reverted the Land Assignment Rules for granting title deeds for up to four acres and removes restrictions on land transfers is uncertain over the ramifications it could bring in the future. The government has no perception if the amendments could abet encroachments, encourage land mafia and resort mafia and raise unauthorised quarries/constructions.

When reversing the Land Assignment rules, the government's priority was only providing title deeds to those who had settled in Idukki district prior to January 1, 1977. Though amendment is being bought in the ''interest of the farmers in Idukki,'' the government is alleged to have not taken note of the wide spread ramifications it could have in the future. 

Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash during a press conference last week had stated that the amendment was a first step and all the issues that could come up will be looked into. On the allegations that the amendment could only help the land and resort mafia, he said '' this is a first step. The amendments have been made for only occupied lands. The government will look into the allegations, if any, in the future,'' he said, which is clear indication that the government has brought out the amendment in haste.

The government has also not clarified on the steps that would be taken if the status of the land that is given for agriculture purpose is changed. The environmentalists doubt that once the title deeds are got, the land will be used for other purposes such as constructing resorts, quarry activities and other purposes.

The government in its order (24-12-2013) has done away with the amendments brought to the rules 5(A) and 8(1) of the Kerala Land Assignment Rules 1964 in 2005 and 2009, which had limited land holdings to one acre and the time stipulation of minimum 25 years for sale of land.


Source; the New Indian Express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/205503/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/30-12-2013#page/4/1

Land Issue: Kerala to serve notice to resume land from Planatation Majors

The Kerala Government that has initiated resumption of the lands in the illegal possession ofHarrisons Malayalam Ltd, will serve a notice on the company in two weeks time for the final

take over of the lands.

The special team constituted to take back the lands in the HML's illegal possession has 

completed 95 per cent inspection of the estates in four districts. 

Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam and Idukki are the four districts that the special team 

headed by special officer M G Rajamanickam is surveying as part of document 1600/1923, which was alleged to be be forged. The special officer was appointed based on the High Court judgement, which had permitted the government to reclaim the land which is allegedly in illegal possession of HML by implementing the provisions of the Land Conservancy Act. 

Stating that all the three districts have been completed, Rajamanickam said ''the inspection inIdukki was conducted on November 29 and 30. The inspection of the remaining Pooppara  and Devikulam regions in Idukki will be completed this week itself, which will complete the whole inspection.''

Once the inspection is complete, a showcase notice will be served on the company as per the 

the Kerala Land Reforms acts and rules in the second week of December to prove its claims over the land, official sources said. The team was entrusted with inspecting a total area of 25630.94 acres of land that comes under the 1600/1923 document.  Of this, the HML had sold 6703 acres of land.  

Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/192486/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/02-12-2013#page/3/1

Aranmula Airport: Kerala's magnanimity when having tough time for giving land to the poor

The state government's move to hand over revenue land to the promoters of the proposed 
Private airport project at Aranmula comes at a time when the revenue department is going 
through a tough time to identify three cents of land each for the poor as part of the Zero 
Landless project.
Apart from Kannur and Kasargode, the landless outnumber the plots identified in the other 
districts. It has also been alleged that the government is giving prime land to the airport that
would have resulted in serious environmental disaster at Aranmula when the land distributed 
as part of the Zero Landless was mired in controversies related to ownership and its 
uninhabitable nature. Though the government claims to have identified about 75,000 plots in 
the first phase of the project, the proceedings have been completed only in the case of 
25,000 families. The government's hasty move to provide land to the KGS Aranumla 
International Airport Ltd has raised several questions even when apprehensions are there over
the implementation of the UDF Government’s flagship populist programme ''Zero
Landless Project''.

Source: The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/188179/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/22-11-2013#page/4/1