Bhubaneswar: The state government has directed Revenue officials to strengthen the protection, management and maintenance of land records of properties belonging to Mahaprabhu Shree Jagannath, Bije Puri.
Revenue and Disaster Management (R&DM) Department Additional Chief Secretary Arabinda Padhee has written to the Board of Revenue, all Revenue Divisional Commissioners (RDCs), Collectors and the Director of Land Records and Survey (DLRS), directing them to take immediate priority action.
Padhee directed officials to take necessary action in accordance with the law, government guidelines and court orders communicated by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA). The government has prioritised the speedy disposal of 11,675 miscellaneous revenue cases filed by the SJTA before Tahasils in nine districts: Khordha, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Baleshwar, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Ganjam, Kataka and Kendrapada.
It has also directed the immediate implementation of orders passed by the Member, Board of Revenue, in 257 cases under Section 7(A) of the Odisha Estates Abolition Act. Officials have been instructed to examine the 1927–28 Record of Rights (RoR), wherever necessary, and take appropriate steps to correct the Khewat. Officials have been directed to examine pre-settlement records from 1888–89, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1929–30 and 1977–78, along with other historical revenue records, while adjudicating cases related to Lord Shree Jagannath’s endowment properties.
The government has also instructed authorities to provide authenticated copies of pre-settlement and settlement Records of Rights (RoRs), along with settlement-to-current record correlation reports, to the SJTA to facilitate the speedy disposal of cases before the Board of Revenue. Revenue Inspectors, Amins and other field-level officials will be deployed to identify, verify and protect the Lord’s landed properties.
Regular field inspections will also be carried out to prevent encroachment, unauthorised occupation, fraudulent claims and other illegal activities involving the temple’s land.
The Revenue department said all such matters will be accorded top priority and reviewed regularly at monthly revenue meetings at the district, sub-divisional and Tahasil levels. Monthly progress reports will also be submitted to the R&DM department.