Five years after announcing to provide homestead land to next-of-kin of the State police personnel killed in anti-naxalite operations, the Odisha Government finally spelt out modalities of transferring such land.
In 2010, the State government had declared that next-of-kin of the State Police personnel who die while discharging their duties in anti-naxalite operations would be allotted up to 0.04 acre of government land in an urban area or 0.10 acre of government land in a rural area free of premium for homestead purpose under the provisions of the Government Grants Act, 1895.
It was announced that allotment of land would be made in favour of the next-of-kin of the deceased police personnel by the respective Tahasildars with the approval of the Collector.
“However, it may be noted that since there is no enabling provision in the Government Grants Act, 1895, Government has no power to delegate or authorize the Tahasildars or any other authority to make such grants or transfers,” the Revenue and Disaster Management department admitted in its latest notification.
Genuine cases
“In genuine cases, it is only the government which is competent to consider such settlement of land under the provisions of the said Act,” it pointed out.
Making improvements in its 2010 notification, the State government decided that allotment of government land would be made in favour of the next-of-kin of the deceased police personnel by Revenue and DM department only.
“The concerned Tahasildar will initiate proposal for allotment of land to such persons under the provisions of the Government Grants Act, 1895 after getting request from such persons and send it to the Collector through the sub-collector after proper scrutiny and due recommendation and collector will recommend each case to this department,” the department said.
This department after getting such proposal from the Collector will send it to home department for concurrence after which allotment of land could be considered on merit by RDM department on a case to case basis.
The State Government clarified that land allotment programme would also be applicable to those police personnel who died prior to 2010.
377 cases
Recently, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik informed the State Assembly that three years (2009, 2010 and 2011) witnessed a total 377 naxal violence cases in which 109 general public and 71 security personnel were killed by extremists.
Similarly, during 2012, 2013 and 2014, the State suffered loss of lives of 66 civilians and 26 security persons. Many of these security personnel killed in anti-naxal operation belonged to the State cadre.
