Punjab Govt to adopt land pooling technique: Kalia

Chandigarh, July 2 (UNI) For the planned development of urban areas of Punjab, the state Government today decided in principle to implement Land Pooling Technique in the state on Gujrat Pattern.

Punjab Local Government and Industry Minister Manoranjan Kalia today, in a press conference, said that under Land Pooling Scheme the land would be acquired from farmers with their consent and out of the total acquired land 60 per cent would be returned to the farmers in the shape of plots after fully developing it. ''Farmer can sell his 60 per cent share as and when he wants. He can even sell it after constructing house on plots allotted to him against 60 per cent land share,'' the minister said.

Mr Kalia further said that with this Land Pooling Scheme market value of farmers' land would increase many folds.

Mr Kalia further said that out of the remaining 40 per cent, 15 per cent would be alloted for park, five per cent for community centre, five per cent for the development of road and the rest 15 per cent would be used by the government for the development of commercial places.

Mr Kalia clarified that for 40 per cent of the developed land the Government would not give any compensation to farmers.

Local Government Principal Secretary D S Bains said that a team has already been constituted to undertake a tour to Gujrat to study the scheme in depth and to explore the possibilities to replicate the scheme in the state.

UNI