Karnataka HC orders transfer of 29,000 acres to forest dept, govt finds only 6,000 acres free of encroachment

A year after the Karnataka High Court ordered the state government to transfer 28,966.41 acres of C and D class land (waste land) to the Forest Department to compensate for the forest land used for development works, officials are struggling to find even waste land that is free of encroachment.

An RTI query by DH has found that till now, the Deputy Commissioner’s office has been able to identify only 6,027.70 acres of waste land that is free of encroachment.

The high court order came in April 2021 after a public interest litigation (PIL) said that the Revenue Department failed to comply with two orders issued by the state government in 1972 and 1994 to transfer 11,722.29 hectares (28,966.41 acre) of C and D class land to the forest department.

Petitioners K A Ravi Chengappa and C C Devaiah had noted that the government sought to transform waste land into forests to compensate for the damage caused to the environment by the development of Harangi reservoir when 3,900 acres of rich green forest was taken away to rehabilitate people affected by the development project.

In reply to the RTI application, the information officer shared a copy of the letter written by the sub-registrar stating that 6,027.20 acres of land has been transferred to the Forest Department with necessary changes made in the revenue documents (Pahani).

To a question on transferring the remaining 22,938.71 acres to Forest Department, Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Sateesha B C stated that the district administration has communicated its challenges to the Revenue Department.

“As of now, we have transferred land that is free from encroachment as per documents as well as the position on the ground. With regard to the transfer of the remaining land, we have explained the changes that have taken place in the last 30 years to the government,” he said.

Sources in the Revenue Department said the government has filed a review petition in the high court.

“The government doesn’t want to face the harsh reality of clearing the encroachment. On the one hand, there are directions to increase forest area. On the other, the government has been extending the time given for regularising encroachments,” the source said.

To a question Chengappa said they have moved a contempt petition against the state government for failing to carry out the court orders despite providing ample amount of time. “Since the matter is sub judice, I cannot comment on it now,” he said.

An official in the forest department said tens of thousands hectares of land, which was declared as Section 4 forest, has been encroached upon and illegally granted to people. “The revenue authorities are not even in the mood to transfer even the land that has already been declared as forest,” an official said.