BJP govt opens doors for buying more than 12.5 acres land in the hills and plains of Uttarakhand

In Uttarakhand, now the rich and affluent businessmen can purchase as much as land for establishing industries, even more than 12.5 acres of land.

While the government of Uttarakhand under the chief ministership of Trivendra Singh Rawat had earlier made necessary amendments in clause 154 of the Uttar Pradesh Revenue Department’s Landlord abolition and Land Reforms Act to oblige capitalists and industrialists in the hilly region to encourage them open industries under 30 classified industrial categories, it has now opened the embargo in the plain areas too.

Now the industrialists from outside the states wanting to invest heavily and massively to open industries in the hills are most welcome, even in the plain areas to purchase more than 12.5 acres of land as was the provision earlier in the hilly areas.

According to the Sushil Kumar, secretary revenue of Uttarakhand state, the proposal in this respect after making necessary amendments in the UP revenue land abolition and reforms act, has already been sent to the governor Baby Rani Maurya for necessary clearance.

As soon as the proposal gets the governor’s nod it would be applicable in the cities and town areas of Uttarakhand too. By introducing this rule, the government of Uttarakhand has opened doors for industrialists from all over the country to buy as much as land they can even over 12.5 acres to establish industries in both hill areas as well as in the plains like Haridwar, Rishikesh, Udham Singh Nagar, Haldwani, Almora, Nainital, etc. Earlier there was the maximum limit of 250 square meters for the outsiders to purchase land in Uttarakhand but the chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat is progressive, liberal and open to allow outside businessmen buy myriad land here and open industries to generate revenue as well as provide employment to the local youths.

However, there is an embargo on this act that in case an industrialist who purchases more than 12.5 areas of land and do not open its industry over a specified period, the govt of Uttarakhand will confiscate the land or revoke the sanction order.

As expected, there had been several protests against the abolition of 12.5 acres ceiling by various socio-political organizations of Uttarakhand in Delhi and Uttarakhand terming it as the opening of the flood gates of Uttarakhand for rich outsiders to purchase unaccounted lands inside the hill areas thus posing a direct threat to its linguistic, cultural heritage and other interests of Uttarakhandies.

What the localities fear is that now the outsider businessmen and land sharks will purchase the lands of the people at throw away prices through manipulative tactics and establish themselves here through money and muscle, posing a direct challenge to the hills’ tranquility and peace and also to the cultural heritage.

According to the BJP leaders of the state what the localities fail to understand is that Uttarakhand is also a part of India and cultural diversity will lead to a more wholesome socio-economic environment, apart from creating more job opportunities for the local youth.

The people of the hill state are already worried due to lessening of their legislative seats after the future census and now after opening the limit of 12.5 acres embargo of land purchase in both the hilly and plain areas of Uttarakhand they foresee more dangerous trends ahead in the shape of the rich outsiders, affluents and the land sharks entering the peaceful valleys of the hills and buying large tracts of lands at throwaway prices thus posing them direct multi-pronged challenges. They fear that the crime rates will increase in these peaceful valleys which have hardly any crime now under Trivendra Singh Rawat government claim BJP leaders.

There is always some objection to every progressive step, as in this case – the biggest benefit to Uttarakhandies will be the growth in the land prices as now more people will be interested to buy land and more job and economic opportunities will now be available to the localities.