Data bank of unused land for LIFE Mission on the cards
'As per the instructions we received, the District Collector will be able to take over such properties directly without any technical hurdles and include them in the data bank for future use. The only requirement is to obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the original landholders concerned,' said a senior officer with the LIFE Mission. He added that grama panchayats and municipalities have already been asked to locate two acres and one acre of unused land, respectively, within their limits for this purpose.
According to Revenue department sources, the majority of government departments have already reviewed their land records and identified unused plots that can be allocated for the housing initiative. Some departments have also submitted preliminary data, along with supporting land documents, to the authorities concerned for initial verification.
'Private landowners and corporate entities can also contribute to the initiative by donating unused land to the Revenue department to help fulfill the dream of the homeless. 'Manassode Ithiri Mannu' is one such special campaign launched by the government to encourage participation,' said an assistant engineer associated with the LIFE Mission projects. He added that generous people from various parts of the Kozhikode district have already donated over 90 cents of land to the authorities.
As per the government records, most of the private landowners who voluntarily participated in the scheme in Kozhikode district are from panchayats such as Thalakkulathur, Kottur, Kunnamangalam, Villiappally, Koodaranhi, Perumanna, Chakkittappara, and Omassery. Officials from the Local Self-Government department said they expect more voluntary donors from other panchayats once the data bank is completed.
In Kozhikode district, the LIFE Mission has successfully addressed the housing needs of 33,477 homeless people across three phases so far. Support from various government departments, State-level schemes, and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana was crucial to the timely completion of these projects. Officials said future projects will mainly focus on around 3,000 landless families identified as extremely poor across the State.
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