Ponguleti prods officials to wrap up 1st phase of land re-survey by Nov 15

Hyderabad: Revenue, Housing, Stamps and Registration, and Information & Public Relations Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy has directed officials to expedite the comprehensive land re-survey and complete the first phase exercise with accuracy and quality by November 15.

Reviewing the performance of the Revenue, Registration and Housing departments of the erstwhile Mahabubnagar district at the IDOC meeting hall in Wanaparthy on Monday, the Minister expressed dissatisfaction over the pace of the re-survey and warned officials that negligence would invite strict action.

Excise Ministers Jupally Krishna Rao and Animal Husbandry Minister Vakiti Srihari, along with MLAs and MLCs from the erstwhile district, senior state-level officials and District Collectors, attended the review meeting.

Ponguleti said the last comprehensive land survey was conducted nearly 120 years ago and described the ongoing re-survey as a major initiative aimed at providing a permanent solution to long-standing land-related problems.

He said the exercise would help address issues relating to land boundaries, ownership rights and unrecorded land transactions, including Saada Bainamas. The Minister reviewed the progress of the survey mandal-wise and interacted with Tahsildars and surveyors to assess the extent of work completed farmers' response and difficulties being encountered in the field.

The Minister said the first phase of the re-survey would cover 70 revenue villages in every district. In addition, 413 revenue villages that have lacked proper maps for decades would also be covered under the comprehensive survey.

He instructed officials to first accurately establish the boundaries of these villages and subsequently undertake the land survey using scientific methods. Modern survey rovers have been supplied to all districts to facilitate the exercise, he said.

Ponguleti directed officials to ensure that the entire process is completed according to the prescribed plan and within the November 15 deadline.

The Minister instructed officials from the Tahsildar level to the District Collector to regularly visit the field and directly supervise the re-survey operations. He also called for close coordination between the Revenue and Forest departments to resolve land-related issues permanently.

He stressed that farmers should be kept informed about the progress of the re-survey and that their doubts and grievances should be addressed at the field level. Farmers should not be made to repeatedly visit government offices for minor issues, he said.

Ponguleti warned that negligence and corruption in the implementation of the survey would not be tolerated and directed officials to identify and resolve genuine long-pending land issues promptly.

The Minister said licensed surveyors were being paid `60 per acre, with payments being made every 15 days. He clarified that the government had not promised a monthly salary to licensed surveyors and that such an arrangement was not feasible.