In an attempt to tighten the noose around landgrabbers, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has directed officials to recover money within 90 days.
The officials were instructed by Mann to complete the process of charging money within three months, according to sources. A meeting was attended by Kuldeep Dhaliwal, MLA Kulwant Singh and K Siva Prasad, Financial Commissioner for Rural Development.
The officer in charge of district development and panchayat preparation of detailed reports regarding the land area was revealed by department sources. Deputy Commissioners will determine the value of the land on the basis of which the amount will be charged as the most important aspect of the whole exercise.
Since more than a decade, developers have owned the prime land, but officials have failed to recover the money from them, acting in connivance with them. The CM has now set a deadline for the amount to be recovered, which has brought the issue closer to resolution.
According to Dhaliwal, the erring developers have been served with notices, and most have approached the department to deposit the amounts due. The process would be completed within the timeframe given by the CM.
According to The Tribune, 80 acres of panchayat lands worth Rs 500 crore were lying in real estate developers’ projects in Mohali, Patiala, Ludhiana, Amritsar, and Bathinda, but the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats has not been able to recover the money.
In Mohali, Patiala, Ludhiana, Amritsar and Bathinda, real estate developers have developed 80 acres of panchayat land worth 500 crore, but the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats has not recovered the money.
