Patna: The Bihar government will launch a special 45-day campaign across the state to rectify errors in Jamabandi land records, Revenue and Land Reforms Minister Dr Dilip Kumar Jaiswal said on Friday.
The campaign will focus on correcting discrepancies in Khata and Khesra numbers, plot details and the names of Raiyats (landholders). Where land measurement is required to resolve an issue, the exercise will be carried out free of cost, Jaiswal said.
He made the announcement during a review meeting with Additional Collectors (Revenue) at the Revenue (Survey) Training Institute in Patna.
Officials told to follow uniform approach
Jaiswal directed officials to abandon a “pick-and-choose” approach while dealing with land-record cases and ensure that all applications are handled uniformly.
He said the increasing number of offline applications was primarily the result of a communication gap between officials and citizens, stressing the need for better coordination and communication at the field level.
The department headquarters will monitor the quality of work being carried out in the administrative circles, or Anchals, on a daily basis. A team of officials will also be constituted to monitor the quality of case disposal in assigned districts.
According to the minister, the arrangement will reduce the supervisory burden on DCLRs and ADMs, while enabling the Secretary to receive daily updates on the quality of work.
Survey notifications for over 1,000 villages
Jaiswal said notifications would soon be issued for more than 1,000 villages in Arwal, Jehanabad, Sheikhpura, Sheohar and Lakhisarai districts as part of ongoing survey operations.
A provision will also be made to allow appeals before the ADM’s court within three months of the notification. A dedicated Survey Appeal Cell will be established to facilitate the process.
Special mutation procedures will be initiated in districts where the new survey is being conducted. The process will include land maps along with land details, with the aim of ensuring clearer identification of land and reducing the possibility of future disputes.
Government land bank to be created
The minister also emphasised the need for every district to create a land bank for government land, calling it an important responsibility of the district administration.
He directed officials to include all categories of government land in the initiative and maintain updated records.
Jaiswal said accurate and up-to-date records of government land would be important for meeting future requirements related to industries and other development projects.
Secretaries Jai Singh and Seema Tripathi, Assistant Director Aajiv Vatsraj, Deputy Director Mona Jha and other officials attended the meeting.
