Encroachment and raising unauthorized structures on encroached land is a growing menace in our society. It has become an issue that is defying control of the administration. Hundreds of kanals of prime land worth crores of rupees has been illegally grabbed by people with strong political connections. It is Government land belonging to various departments like forest, JDA, Revenue and Jammu Municipal Corporation. The real problem is that land mafia has established vast network and is so entrenched as to defy all action by the Government. On its part, the Government is at a loss to find a viable and effective solution to this problem. We find many complaints brought to the notice of the authorities but there is hardly any action to show that the concerned departments are really interested in vacating these illegal occupations.
The State Government has floated the project of channelizing various nullahs in Jammu as part of flood prevention measure. Once these are channelized, the flood water flowing in them during rainy season will be drained off through one major channel thereby saving the areas from recurrent floods. There are many nullahs that will be channelized. Total length of the channelized nullahs is more than 20 kilometers, which are passing from various localities like Sanjay Nagar, Marble Market, Gangyal, Digiana, Jeevan Nagar etc. Land reclaimed from channelizing the nullahs is huge and its cost runs into crores of rupees. However channelizing the flood nullahs is likely to give rise to a serious problem. The Chief Executive Officer of J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA), which has been channelizing the nullahs, has recently sent a communiqué to the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu expressing serious apprehensions that land grabbers could encroach upon the reclaimed lands and raise structures on them which that department cannot stop. The communiqué says that land mafia is already active and if preventive steps are not taken to forestall illegal encroachment, it will be soon that large chunks of reclaimed land will be illegally occupied by the land grabbers. The matter has been brought to the notice of Deputy Chief Minister who is also holding the charge of Housing Department. The Deputy Chief Minister has advised that the reclaimed land is to be utilized for meaningful purposes. Jammu city is short of parks, playing grounds, society centers, auditoriums and picnic spots. It is also devoid of many civil facilities. The reclaimed land should be utilized for civic amenities and for beautification of the city instead of allowing the land mafia to grab the land for tuppence. The major nullahs, being channelized by ERA and leading to reclamation of land thereof, include Gangyal Nullah (from Jodhamal Public School to MBS College of Engineering), Digiana Nullah (from downstream of Railway track and back side of Jai Hind Bakery to Ashram Nullah near Ashram at Jeeven Nagar), Ashram Nullah ( from downstream of Railway track near Marble Market to Gangyal Nullah near MBS College of Engineering) and Thanger Nullah ( from Hotel Ritz near National Highway to Sanjay Nagar near house of AEE Bhatti). All of these nullahs fall within the jurisdiction of Jammu district. Therefore the reclaimed land belongs to Jammu Development Authority (DA), Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) and J&K Housing Board as these nullahs fall within the Jammu City. These departments should immediately move and stake their claim to the patches of reclaimed land, take it into their possession, get it entered in the records of the Revenue Department, fence it and immediately put it to proper use. Two most urgent steps have to be taken and these are documentation in revenue records and fencing of the areas. We also think that strong legislation should come into force so that stringent action is taken against the land grabbing elements. For example, if somebody is found in illegal possession of the reclaimed land, his property should be confiscated by way of punishment. Unless there is strict accountability, this menace may not be uprooted.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel