Bhubaneswar, July 7: Almost 60 years after land settlement and consolidation process started in Odisha, it is yet to come near completion.
Worried over the tardy progress, the Odisha government plans to introduce “hi-tech methods” for land settlement.
Chief secretary Bijay Patnaik said: “We will introduce satellite method or the GPS (global positioning system) for the measurement of land.”
He also said that the state cabinet had already approved the project.
Hi-tech cadastral resurvey, a pilot project under the National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NLRMP), which was introduced in two villages — Pitmabarpur Sasana and Bije Padmanabhapur under Digapahandi block of Ganjam district — have also been completed.
The Odisha government has been implementing the NLRMP since 2008-09. The programme is being carried out in 13 districts of Odisha in a phased manner with 50:50 financial contribution of the central and the state governments. “We have chalked out a plan to complete the programme by 2015-16,” said an official.
The land-settlement operation was introduced in Odisha in 1962. Out of 51,551 revenue villages, survey and settlement operation was taken up in 48,719 villages in the first round. Out of these, final publication and record of rights distribution have been completed in 48,585 villages.
“To ensure that the survey was completed properly, the Odisha government has also introduced a revision of the work. In the second round, 12,359 villages have been notified for revision survey and settlement operation,” said an official of the state revenue department.
Out of these, settlement operation work has been completed in 8,746 villages. Despite facing many odds, the Odisha government has decided to go ahead with the settlement operation in Kandhamal district.
The land consolidation programme was first taken up in Odisha in 1974. Out of the 51,551 revenue villages, 10,039 villages were brought under consolidation programme.
While consolidation operations have been completed in 7,375 villages, the government also plans to undertake a revision of the survey work in all these villages to ensure that the consolidation process was error-free.
