Bangalore: In the wake of the ongoing protest by the Anti Land-grabbing Action Committee led by freedom fighter H.S. Doreswamy,  which started a month ago, the state government has begun to act tough. 

Over the past four days, the Bangalore Urban district administration has recovered 31 acres of encroached government land worth Rs. 170 crore in different parts of the city.  Two special deputy commissioners recently appointed by the government have been entrusted with the investigation and identification of land-grab cases across the city

According to the district administration, the extent of encroachment is around 34,111 acres. Of this, around 14,563 acres – a mere 42.7 per cent – has been recovered since 2007.

Pic courtesy: Augustus Binu | DreamSparrow Photography

Additional District Commissioner R. Venkatachalapathy claimed that an action plan had been formulated to recover the remaining 19,548 acres.

He does not credit the ongoing agitation for the increased activity from the government side, but claims it is part of a regular drive.

Former MLA A.T. Ramaswamy, who headed the Joint Legislature Committee on encroachment and grabbing of government land in Bangalore, however, said that the “recovery drive” was just a tip of the iceberg. He stressed the need for taking action against Land Sharks, politicians, and bureaucrats who have created fake documentation and colluded with the government. He alleged the scam could be worth Rs: 2 Lakh Crore. He suggested the invocation of the Goonda act and tried in special courts to be instituted once the Karnataka Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Bill is enacted.

Deputy Commissioner of Bangalore (Urban) District V. Shankar claimed that the district administration has been booking criminal cases against the encroachers including government officials, under the amended sections of the Karnataka Land Reforms Act and under the IPC.