Give info on outsiders buying HP land: Dhumal

Times of India: Shimla: Wednesday, 05 August 2015.

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal has demanded that information related to the permission granted to outsiders buying land in the state be uploaded on a website. Local residents should know about the persons who were granted permission under section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act and those who were denied the same and why, he added.

Earlier, an RTI activist had raised the issue and sought detailed information about the persons who were given permission but state the revenue department had claimed that the data regarding occupation of land, purchase, quantum of land actually purchased and the status of land was not available. Section 118 of the Act allows the purchase of land by non-agriculturists from outside the state in Himachal Pradesh for residential and other purposes. For this a prescribed process is followed and then the state cabinet gives the approval.

RTI activist Dev Ashish Bhattcarya, in a letter written to additional chief secretary (revenue) Tarun Shridhar, in July had demanded that directions should be issued to all the deputy commissioners to upload information on the departmental website about the people who bought land in the state. On Tuesday, Dhumal wrote a letter to Tarun Shridhar stating that the permission by different governments should be uploaded on the website so that every citizen of country should know the names of those who had benefitted and also of those who had been denied permission. He said information sought by the RTI activist was very vital for transparency in the working of government. "Hope you will take necessary action at the earliest so that all controversies are set to rest," he added.

He said that he had filed RTI application on April 10. On May 6, the PIO-cum-deputy secretary (revenue) Rakesh Mehta informed him that they did not have the date and advised him to get the said information from respective deputy commissioners. He said that it was a matter of surprise that the office of the revenue secretary did not have the information although it was the final authority to approve or disapprove all the section 118 related cases.