The Madras High Court has disapproved of the “illegality” committed by the Revenue Department in Puducherry by fixing guideline value of lands, including wetlands, in a uniform manner on square feet basis without verifying the nature of the property, its locational advantages and availability of amenities such as road connectivity, water, electricity and so on.
Justices K.K. Sasidharan and P. Velmurugan pointed out the illegality while disposing of an appeal suit preferred by the revenue officials challenging enhancement of compensation, as ordered by an Additional District Court, for lands acquired by them from Ambalathadum Swamigal Madam for providing free house sites to landless labourers at Embalam village in Bahour taluk.
“We deem it fit and proper to indicate the illegality committed by the Revenue Department, Government of the Union Territory of Puducherry, in the matter of fixing guideline value. We have come across cases several cases from Puducherry indicating that the guideline value is fixed in a uniform manner on square foot basis without verifying the nature of land,” the judges said.
“The guideline rate for the commercial land abutting the main road or highway cannot be the guiding factor for fixing the value for land having no such road access or which is away from town. The guideline rate for wetland should be less when compared to the developed land..”
Cites SC ruling
Authoring the judgment, Mr. Justice Sasidharan recalled that the Supreme Court had in Kasthuri versus State of Haryana (2003) clearly indicated that existence of a particular piece of developed land could not be a ground to value all the land in the area alike. Similarly, in Vithal Rao’s case this year, the apex court had listed out factors that would determine land value.
“The revenue department in the Union Territory of Puducherry has been fixing land value on square feet basis even for wet land... There is no distinction shown between the value of developed housing /commercial plot and undeveloped plots situated in a remote or low lying area.
“If a scientific method of valuation is adopted by the Revenue Department taking into account the nature of the land and its locational advantages, claim for enhanced compensation even for wet and undeveloped land on the basis of the rate fixed for developed land could be avoided,” the Bench added.
After being informed that the Government of Puducherry had reduced the guideline rate recently and even such reduction was made on a uniform basis, the judges said: “We make it clear that the officials of the Revenue Department must inspect the land in each village and the guideline rate should be fixed taking into account the locational advantages and disadvantages of a particular land.
