Govt to roll out online system for land conversion soon

In a big step towards ensuring ease of doing business, the government on Monday decided to introduce online system for land conversion.

Addressing a press conference here, Revenue Minister R V Desphande said the move would lead to uniformity in land conversion rules across various urban development authorities. The government has issued an order enabling the provision.

The URL (address) of the website where the applications can be submitted would be unveiled soon.

He said the government had already amended Section 95 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, to simplify land conversion rules.

The minister said a decision to simplify the rules was taken following complaints from land owners about inordinate delays in clearing land conversion applications and also harassment by officials of local authorities.

The government has developed a software as part of the reform process.

As per the new procedure, applicants can submit their request online along with survey number of the land. The applicants will have to also submit an affidavit that the information provided is true.

An ‘11 E sketch’ (sketch of the portion of a property for which conversion order has been sought) will have to be furnished if the request is for partial conversion, if the RTC consists of multiple owners and in case of pykti RTCs (records prepared by village accountants without maps).

The minister said the application would be forwarded to the urban development department for verification whether the request is in accordance with the jurisdictional master plan.

The applicant is then informed about the conversion fee that has to be paid. Following the payment of fee, the deputy commissioner will digitally sign the conversion order, which will be sent online to the applicants. The minister said the entire process will be completed within seven days.

“Once a development plan for a city is notified by the government it becomes permissible for land owners in such areas to use the land as per the provision of the plan and under corresponding development control regulations. If the proposed land conversion is in accordance with the master plan, such cases can be considered as deemed conversions”, Deshpande said.

Bagair hukum land

He said the Revenue department had come out with a new format for applying for regularisation of bagair hukum land being used for cultivation purposes (cut-off date January 1, 2005). “Form 57” has been brought out for the purpose and farmers can start filing their applications from October 1, up to March 16, 2019.