Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has initiated a comprehensive campaign to tackle widespread encroachment of government land across the state. This move comes following concerns raised during a high-level meeting about the increasing scale of illegal occupation of public property.
Satyabrata Sahu, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Odisha, issued a directive to all district authorities emphasizing the need for “optimum management of land resources” and the removal of encroachments in both urban and rural areas.
In his communication, Sahu mentioned that encroachments have been impeding the smooth allocation of land for developmental purposes, resulting in unrealized opportunity costs for the government. He also pointed out that such illegal occupations often lead to prolonged litigation, creating additional challenges for the administration.
The directive also emphasized conducting a realistic survey of rural and urban encroachments and removing encroachments as per existing rules. To protect such Government land by the suitable fence and conspicuously displayed board. Allocated funds will be utilized for this purpose, with a prompt reporting mechanism for any fund shortages.
District authorities have been instructed to submit fortnightly action-taken reports to the Revenue and Disaster Management Department. The government has classified this initiative as “Most Urgent,” underscoring its importance in the state’s development agenda.
