Govt permits use of Agricultural land to non-agricultural purposes
Approves establishment of Medi-cities in Pampore, Jammu
JAMMU: In a significant decision, the Administrative Council (AC) which met here under the chairmanship of the Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, approved the regulations framed by the board of revenue for conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes. These regulations were necessitated after the legislative changes in the land revenue act post-reorganization of the erstwhile state.
These regulations have been issued to regulate the uncontrolled conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes on the one hand and keeping the developmental aspirations of the UT and the people on the other hand.
Under the new regulations, the District Collector has been empowered to grant permission to the change in land use from agricultural to non-agricultural purposes in accordance with the procedure as to be notified by the board of Revenue. The permission is to be granted within 30 days of filing of the application with a provision of deemed approval if no decisions is taken.
The powers have been delegated to the District Collector to grant permission for land up to 12 ½ standard acres against a fee of 5 per cent of the market value of the land notified under the Stamps Act.
The regulations empower the applicant to commence the non agriculture use on the permitted land within one year from the date of the order issued by the District Collector in this behalf. However, the land can be diverted and used only for the purpose specified in the permission.
Moreover, the regulations provide exemption from seeking the permission in cases of conversion for construction of residential house or farm-related buildings and storages with a ceiling of 400 Sq. mtrs (17 Marla).
The Assistant Commissioner (Revenue), Sub-Divisional Magistrate and Tehsildar concerned have been entrusted with the responsibility of monitoring the implementation of these regulations within their respective areas of jurisdiction. Besides, it will be the duty of every Agriculture Extension Officer to report cases of violation to the revenue officers and any neglect on this account can attract disciplinary action for dereliction of duty.
The decision is aimed at ensuring production of sufficient quantity of food grains, besides promoting orderly growth of industrial and services sector in this Union territory and creation of employment.
By this, the UT will be at par with the leading States of the country in allowing the conversion and reducing compliance burden under Business Reforms Action Plan (Ease of Doing Business) in an investor friendly eco-system.
The AC also approved the proposal of Industries and Commerce Department to establish two medi-cities, one each at Sempora, Pampore and Miransahib, Jammu.
The decision aims at strengthening the health services in the Union territory and support recovery and disaster resilience in calamity prone areas by increasing Government’s capacity to promptly respond to emergency situations.
The Medicity in Kashmir Division will be established on an area of Sempora, Pampore Pulwama. The centrality of the place will act as a focal point for whole population of the valley for specialized health services.
Similarly, Medicity in Jammu division, will be established at Miransahib, Jammu. The land is ideally located close to the main city and can cater to the medical service requirements of the entire division.
Pertinently, setting up of new medical and higher education institutions in private sector is a part of the new Industrial Policy. The identified will be allotted transparently as per the J&K Industrial Land Allotment Policy.
The AC also accorded the administrative approval to the construction of additional block of Indira Gandhi Government Dental College, Jammu at an estimated cost of Rs. 44.46 crore.
The construction of the new block will cater to the increased patient load by creating infrastructure for several clinical departments including hospital administration, emergency section, operation theatre, wards, prosthodontics & dental material department, pedodontics department, oral pathology, dental histology department, and community dentistry department.
The enhanced infrastructure will also remove the deficiency pointed out by the team of Dental Council of India (DCI) during their visit to college in terms of in-sufficient building infrastructure for starting of PG Courses in the next session.
The decision is aimed at providing quality dental services to the public and introducing post graduate courses in dental care. It will also support the up-gradation of vital Dental care services on modern grounds.
Farooq Khan and Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisors to the Lieutenant Governor, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary, J&K and Nitishwar Kumar, Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor attended the meeting.
KV News
