Land survey must for new Revenue Act

Hyderabad: Although Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao's decision to bring in new revenue Act to ensure distribution of conclusive title deeds to all bona fide land owners is welcomed, the major challenge posed before the Telangana government is the conduct of land survey of the entire land in the state.

Apparently, it will be a burdensome to implement the proposed new act in letter and spirit without the conduct of a fresh land survey which meant to finalise the land boundaries and identify real owners in each survey number across the state.

Taking serious note of the growing number of complaints lodged with the Revenue department and also pending disputes on the ownerships of lands in the courts, the CM had recently announced to introduce new revenue Act under which the land owners will be given permanent title deeds in the place of sale deeds that was in practice since decades in the Telangana region.

Special Advisor Rajiv Sharma is busy preparing the new revenue Act in consultation with experts.

Top officials of the state Revenue department told The Hans India that the KCR's initiative to enforce a new Act on the lines of Canada, Australia and Switzerland where the land owners were given conclusive title deeds awarding permanent land ownership rights to the dwellers.

The respective governments in the three countries has taken at least 20 to 30 years to complete the official process of land survey in each survey number and finalise the ownership of land.

"The enforcement of the new revenue Act is a gigantic task before the Telangana government which had successfully completed the purification of land records recently and distributed title deeds to the farmers.

After encountering series of land disputes during the distribution of title deeds, the chief minister has decided to put an end to the perennial problem in the form of new revenue Act which accords top priority to the finalisation of land ownership followed by the execution welfare schemes mainly extension of benefits under Apathbandhu, Kalyana Lakshmi, issuing of caste and income certificates and enumeration of damages in the natural calamities," a senior official said.

After 1930, no land survey has been conducted in Telangana. The top brass in the Revenue department has forwarded a proposal to the government for the conduct of land survey in 2014 but the latter did not give it consent due various reasons.

Officials said that currently, the revenue department was implementing 157 Acts related to land issues and other government sponsored schemes. The new Act will emphasis more on distribution of title deeds only.

The government would have to conduct the survey of every land being used for domestic, commercial and agriculture purpose before the distribution of conclusive title deeds to every beneficiary.

It will take some years' time, the official said.