TNN: SECUNDERABAD: Sunday, July 29, 2018.
Even as MPs
and vice-presidents of 62 Cantonments are getting ready to resolve the issue of
contentious lands in various Cantonments at a convention in Delhi on August 4
and 5, it has emerged that land parcels owned by the Secunderabad Cantonment
Board, Local Military Authority and some lands managed by the Defence Estates
Office, Telangana circle, belong to the erstwhile Nizam's regime.
In a reply to
an RTI query, deputy director general (lands-1) of Director General Defence
Estates (DGDE), MoD, Delhi, said the lands have been handed over, from time to
time, freely by the Nizam's government for the occupation of British troops
stationed within his (Nizam's) territory ( TOI is in possession of the
document). "This is evident from Nizam's letter No 276 dated 08/02/1904,
which stated that no compensation shall be taken from the government of India
for the lands that may be given for the use of British troops. Control of such
lands on behalf of the military use were vested in the GoI and a 'Resident'
official administered these lands," clarified the defence official.
Confirming
this, chairman of All Cantonments Citizen's Welfare Association (ACCiWA) ML
Aggarwal told TOI: "The Britishers were invited by then Nizam as a
security force to guard them against French/Tipu Sultan/Marathas as their
empires stretched from Chennai to Visakhapatnam and current Hyderabad,
Karnataka and Aurangabad.
"Their
army was stretched at that time and hence, they 'paid' the British in the form
of land parcels."
Joining the
issue, secretary of ACCiWA, Secunderabad chapter, Jeetender Surana said then
attorney general of India G Ramaswamy had observed that GoI had no titles on
lands in Secunderabad Cantonment. "While the legal rights of the owners
are indisputable, the MoD has to take a call on settling this vexatious issue
in the interests of Cantonment residents," Surana felt.
As per SCB
official portal, the total land under Secunderabad Cantonment is 40.17 square
km. Of which, 58% belongs to the defence establishment followed by 37% in civil
area, including B2 land, B3 land, C land and civil area.
.JPG)
.JPG)
