Harrisons Malayalam Limited (HML) has got as much as 59, 363 acres of illegal land in Kerala and the Government would retrieve the land for distribution among the landless poor families, said Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash during a press conference at Pathanamthitta Press Club on Tuesday.
Mr. Prakash welcomed the HML declaration that it was willing to surrender 834.53 acres of excess land to the State Government. According to him this, in effect, is a victory of the Government in the case filed before the Kerala High Court in 2011.
Mr. Prakash said the records of many HML lands in Kerala were invalid or illegal and the Government was bound to retrieve the lands that are in unauthorised possession of private parties in the State. He said that there was no question of compromise or yielding on the part of the Government in its declared stand to retrieve the land from the illegal possession.
Mr. Prakash said that notice has already been issued to HML to vacate 831.52 acres of excess land in its possession in the Kallely Estate (Koney Estate) in Konni. The Government has also directed various District Collectors to take necessary steps to take possession of land that are in the illegal or unauthorised possession of HML and other private parties in their respective districts on an emergency basis, he added.
The Minister said a large number of tribals and other poor people were landless and the Government would provide at least three cents of land to each landless family in the State. He said the list of landless families in the State would be announced on August 15.
Mr. Prakash said the Government would soon take necessary steps to retrieve all lands in the unauthorised possession of various private parties.
He said the HML statement before the High Court amply exposed the fact that various land documents and records claimed to have been in the possession of the company were invalid.
