A high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has worked out a solution to the issue of settler farmers in the hill regions of Kozhikode district being unable to remit tax for land which they have been cultivating for years.
A blueprint has been drawn up after the Malayora Karshaka Action Committee led by chairman Kuriakose Ikkulambil and convener O.D. Thomas met the Chief Minister, Revenue Minister E. Chandrasekharan and Forest Minister K. Raju last month in this regard.
“As many as 77 farmers who have occupied their land in three villages of Koorachundu grama panchayat before January 1, 1977, will be able to own their land and remit taxes.
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“However, a survey will be carried out within three months,” District Collector N. Prasanth said.
The farmers at Koorachundu and Kanthaladu villages have been stopped by the Forest Department from remitting the land tax at the village office as they had allegedly encroached forestlands in the region.
Kozhikode Divisional Forest Officer K.K. Sunilkumar said the action committee had submitted a list of 126 farmers who had been cultivating crops on land demarcated as forestland. The State government had previously agreed in principle to allow the farmers to take into their possession the lands under cultivation if these had been occupied before January 1, 1977. Now, the land occupied by 49 farmers would be recovered.
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