Govt issues new guideline for armed forces to hire land

Jammu, June 4 (UNI) Acting on the representations from discontented owners, the Central Government today issued a series of guidelines to simplify further the procedure for hiring or requisition of lands and buildings by the armed forces in Jammu and Kashmir.

''Under the new guidelines, normally, no land or building should be occupied by the Armed Forces without the completion of hiring formalities. However, whenever their occupation becomes inevitable without first completing the formalities, in the case of buildings, the Board of Officers should be convened promptly and proceedings completed within a period of sixty days from the date of occupation of the building,'' Defence Ministry spokesman Lt Col S D Goswami told UNI.

The decision to issue the guidelines follows various representations from discontented owners whose properties were occupied by the armed forces and there was delay in regularisation of occupation of such properties due to various operational reasons.

In the case of occupation of land, the spokesman said, the intimation thereof should be given immediately to the DEO concerned and to the Station Headquarters so that the Board of Officers for regularisation of occupation of land is convened within a period of one month from the date of such occupation.

As per the new guidelines, in the case of land, the Board Proceedings should be completed within a period of 60 days.

Thereafter, the case should immediately be processed for issue of administrative approval/sanction for hiring of the land by the Competent Authority. The administrative approval/sanction should be issued within another 60 days. The CDA or his representative should be included as a member of the Board of Officers.

While taking the willingness of the owner for hiring of his land/house/building, the lease agreement should be got signed from him at that stage/time itself.

More UNI VJ SB DS1235