Squatters get time till June 30 to voluntarily vacate panchayat land

PUNJAB RURAL DEVELOPMENT MINISTER KULDEEP SINGH DHALIWAL ANNOUNCED THIS AFTER MEETING REPRESENTATIVES OF 23 FARMERS’ BODIES ON MONDAY

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government has given illegal occupiers time till June 30 to voluntarily relinquish possession of panchayat land, after which action will be initiated to evict them. Rural development and panchayats minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal announced this after meeting representatives of 23 farmers’ bodies here on Monday. “The Punjab government is removing illegal occupants from panchayat lands after completing the legal process,” he said, while clarifying that no house will be demolished.

The minister also issued directions to the officers concerned to ensure that a 15-day notice is served before the removal of illegal encroachments. He said that if any person who gets the notice has any document in support of their rightful claim, it can be submitted with the district development and panchayat officer for examination.

Dhaliwal said that so far paperwork has been completed to remove illegal occupiers from 8,000 acres of panchayat land while 2,600 acres of land has already been released. The squatters in these cases had exhausted all legal options, he said. Stating that the state government will protect the interests of poor and small farmers, the minister clarified that the department is also giving priority to the present occupier of agricultural panchayat land to get it on lease. A joint nine-member committee of government officials and representatives of farmer organisations will also be formed to identify farmers who turned barren tracts into cultivable land. To provide relief in such cases, if required, the matter will be taken up in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, said Dhaliwal. He said after June 10, a campaign will be launched to remove illegal occupiers from commercial panchayat lands too.