By Daya Sagar
With the Minister for Revenue, Syed Basharat Bukhari, informing J&K Legislative Assembly on 18th June 2016 about status of allotments made under Jammu and Kashmir State Lands (Vesting of Ownership to Occupants) Act, 2001 amended upto date (commonly known as Roshni scheme) in response to question asked BJP’s Rajiv Jasrotia the subject has been again placed for discussions.
As per my analysis the investigation being made by government on the role of the revenue officers in verification of occupation rights under the Roshni Act 2001 (with amendments till 2007), fixation of compensation (cost ) to be taken from occupants, assessment of individual cases for the cost to be paid and the short fall in targeted revenue generation are not going in right direction. The result has been that right since 2011 the whole investigation exercise has been lost in ‘individual’ localized allegations / contests as regards urban sanctions by the revenue authorities.
It will not be wrong to say that even the CAG report tabled in LA in 2014 has not been made and seen in the right prospective since the report had concentrated more on the shortfall in revenue generation as was targeted in 2001 than on the revenue that could possibly be generated in view of the amendments made in the Act 2001 through 2007 by the Legislature. The ‘target’ revenue had been drastically reduced in view of amendment to Roshni Act made in 2007 by Legislature and AG Auditors had in a way discussed the report overlooking this aspect and had more raised questions on the revenue officer for the shortfall being more out of individual Urban allotments made on the basis of general locality wise base land values fixed by the Price Fixation Committee and the rules made by the Government under the Act for different categories . The CAG / Auditor had instead totally suppressed the fact that Ghulam Nabi Azad lead Congress – PDP Government had got the Roshni Act amended to include even the encroachments made after 1989 till 2004 in the scope and had also decided to transfer the ownership rights to occupants / encroachers of the Agricultural land in their possession “Free of Cost” by charging just Rs.100/ kanal towards documentation costs this way the target revenue of Rs.25000 Cr would itself have fallen to less than Rs.1000 to1000 Cr keeping in view that 97.68% of the land allotted under Roshni till March 2014 was under Agriculture category (as per CAG report upto March 2013 out of the 3,48,160 kanal land cases decided till March 2013 a large chunk of 3,40,090 kanal ( 97.68%) has been under this category.) .( Accountant General Audit (PAG) SubhashChander Pandey had told media on 8th March 2014 that the Roshni Act was launched in 2001, it was amended in 2004 and a clause, which had maintained that the land was allotted to those who have encroached from 1990, was deleted. “The benefits of this amendment were taken by the law knowing people and ‘insiders’ and it lead to more encroachment on the land taking total illegally occupied land to 20 lakh kanals till 2014,” “The estimated market value of the encroached 20 lakh kanals land in November 2006 was Rs 25,500 crores”) . As per the information parted by the government agencies so far more than 97 % lands given to the occupants under Roshni Act have been under the Agriculture land category.and that way the target revenue could been seen as reduced to just Rs. 750 Cr. Yes, if at all, there was a more immediate need to see the manipulations made and favours done by some individual revenue officers, the investigations should have been taken on the “Agricultural” lands as the first priority than concentrating / hobnobbing around only some urban cases against what atleast some cost was to be realised as per prices fixed by PFC..
J&K Assembly under the ruling Congress party passed the amendment to Roshni Bill on February 9th , 2007. Claiming that bill will provide free of cost ownership of 16.6 lakh kanals (worth Rs. 20,000 crores; and with 19 lakh cultivators as beneficiaries) to farmers. The government termed the decision “historic” and next only to the passing of the Land to the Tiller Act by the State’s first Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who took land from the feudal lords and handed it over to tillers without any compensation. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who moved the Bill with amendments in the House, said the land occupying farmers would have to pay a nominal fee of Rs 100 per kanal for getting mutation in their favour in the revenue record. He said the Bill, which would go down as revolutionary in the history of the State after the Land to the Tiller Act, was farmer-friendly and good for the growth of the agriculture sector, on which the State’s economy depends.AS per CAG report tabled March 2014 out of total 348160 kanals decided till March 2013 a huge chunk (97.68% ) of 3,40,091 kanals had been categorized as ‘agricultural’ land worth free of cost transfer….. Continued
( Daya Sagar is a
Sr Journalist & social activist can be reached [email protected])
