Pune: Revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule has ordered a statewide exercise to rectify revenue records for govt leasehold land. The move follows the discovery of numerous instances where leaseholders were wrongly recorded as “occupants,” allowing them to stake illegal ownership claims over valuable public land.District collectors have been directed to scrutinise all such entries and complete the updating of records within three months.The directive, issued Friday, comes months after the Vikas Kharge committee, which investigated land irregularities in Pune’s Mundhwa area, flagged widespread manipulation of land records and recommended systemic reforms to safeguard public property. The committee’s findings, tabled in the state legislature during the budget session, highlighted significant lapses in the current documentation process.“The main thrust of this drive is to make the revenue administration more transparent, accurate, and citizen-centric,” Bawankule said. “These directions will create a uniform system across the state, improving the accuracy of govt-owned land data, reducing unnecessary disputes, and strengthening revenue management.”Acting on instructions from chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, the revenue department has mandated that in the Record of Rights for all govt land, the “occupant” column must exclusively feature the “state govt.” This rule applies regardless of whether the land has been leased to individuals, private companies, institutions, or other authorities.A department circular noted that govt land is frequently leased for long durations—ranging from 30 to 999 years. However, authorities found that many leaseholders had been erroneously listed as occupants without govt approval.In Pune, revenue officials confirmed that the drive is already underway. “We have issued notices and already reclaimed land in 15 such instances,” an official told TOI. “Checks are being conducted to ensure land is being used for its stated purpose and that all land record entries are legally sound.”According to the revenue department, improper entries made by officials in the past led leaseholders to treat public land as private property. This has resulted in a surge of litigation and ownership disputes.To end this practice, the govt has introduced a revised recording procedure in the record of rights. It has been made mandatory that only the state govt be shown as the occupant in the relevant revenue records, officials said. The “other rights” column should mention the leaseholder’s name, lease period and the specific terms and conditions on which the land was granted.The circular also addresses leases granted prior to the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966. For leases granted on a permanent basis or for 50 years with renewal options, officials must categorize them under “occupant Class-II”. District collectors have 30 days to make these specific entries and submit a compliance report to the state govt.Senior officials believe the move will tighten oversight of prime properties and curb future attempts to encroach on or misappropriate valuable state assets.
