Asks Home Secy to speed up return of several pockets occupied by Army
In a significant development, the state government has decided to expedite the process of vacating of land by the Army. This is an indication to parties to form a government in Jammu and Kashmir, which is under Governor’s rule at present.
Highly placed sources said the state government had directed Home Secretary RK Goyal to expedite the process of return of certain pockets in possession of the Army, which was agreed upon in the Civil-Military Liaison (CML) conference that was held in Srinagar on September 29 last year.
“The Governor, who recently addressed the Union Defence Minister regarding enhancement in rental compensation for land under the Army’s occupation, would shortly review the return of certain pockets of land, with the Army at present,” a Raj Bhawan spokesperson said here today.
The government, administered by the Governor, had taken all possible measures to restore people’s confidence in the administrative set-up as it vigorously followed decisions taken by the previous political dispensation headed by late Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who died on January 7.
The Governor’s resolve to review the return of certain pockets of land, in possession of the Army at present, was a sequel to the decision taken during the first CML conference of the previous PDP-BJP government held last year.
The follow-up of major policy decisions was a part of the Governor’s efforts for early restoration of a popular elected government in the state. So far, he had sought the response of the PDP
and BJP, the two largest political parties, on government formation twice.
Referring to the ‘Agenda of Alliance’ of the PDP-BJP government during the CML conference, Mufti had asked the Army to expedite vacating of Tattoo Ground at Batmaloo in the heart of Srinagar. He had said, “It will enable the government to develop basic facilities at Tattoo Ground in the interest of the public.”
On November 3 last year, the then Chief Minister laid the foundation stone of a citizens’ park at Tattoo Ground. It was for the first time that the Army had agreed to part with a chunk of land for development of a citizens’ park.
Issues pertaining to vacating of land by the Army in Gulmarg, High Ground in Anantnag, Tattoo Ground in Srinagar, Lower Khurbathang in Kargil, Jammu airport and Jammu University campus in a time-bound manner were discussed.
The ‘Agenda of Alliance’, which was the framework for governance of the PDP-BJP government, stated, “All land other than that given to security forces on the basis of lease, licence and acquisition under the provision of the Land Acquisition Act shall be returned to rightful legal owners, except in a situation where retaining the land is absolutely imperative in view of a specific security requirement. In any case, monetary remuneration, be it in the form of rent or compensation, should be made fairly at market rates.”
The state government constituted a high-level panel on January 29 to oversee the process of taking possession of land from the Army and security forces.
