Pong Dam oustees may soon be allotted land in Rajasthan
After decades of struggle and legal hurdles, relief appears to be in sight for thousands of Pong Dam oustee families. The Rajasthan Government is soon going to begin the process for the allotment of land to those still awaiting rehabilitation.
Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Hemraj Bairwa said that the Rajasthan Government had recently identified land for allotment to the Pong Dam oustees, who were previously left out in the allotment process. “The Rajasthan Government has also reconsidered cases of those dam oustees who, despite earlier allotments, could not take possession of land due to legal or procedural issues,” he added.
Bairwa said, “A joint team of the Rajasthan and Himachal governments had recently visited the land identified for allotment to the Pong Dam oustees.” He added that in the past couple of months, the Rajasthan Government had allotted “pattas” of land to 250 families and 50 such allotments were made last year.
Initially, the Rajasthan Government had given a 45-day deadline to the oustees to complete formalities and take possession of the plots allotted to them. This period was later extended to 90 days. However, hundreds of beneficiaries still could not meet the requirement in time. The state government had now extended the compliance window further to 180 days.
The allotment process falls under the Rajasthan Colonisation (Allotment of Government Land to Pong Dam Oustees in the Rajasthan Canal Colony) Rules, 1972, which assures of irrigated land in the Indira Gandhi Canal (Rajasthan Canal) command area in Ganganagar, Bikaner and Jaisalmer districts.
As per the details available, of the 16,352 Pong Dam displaced families declared eligible for rehabilitation in Rajasthan, at least 6,500 are still awaiting land allotment, more than five decades after their displacement due to the construction of the Pong Dam in Kangra district.
Himachal Tribune