Latest news with #DSRs
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
About 300 revenue officers in Odisha issued show-cause notices for land sale norms flout
BHUBANESWAR : State govt has issued show-cause notices to around 300 govt employees posted as district sub-registrars (DSRs) in the past 10 years, who are involved in suspected irregularities in land sales, revenue, and disaster management, revenue minister Suresh Pujari said here on Tuesday. "Officers who were on DSR duty between 2014 and 2024 and indulged in illegal activities are facing disciplinary proceedings. Some of them even faced criminal charges and are in jail," he said. There are 217 sub-registrar offices and 30 DSR offices in the state. Several cases of land fraud and illegalities involving DSRs have been reported in the past year. In March, a DSR and four brokers in Sambalpur were arrested for land fraud to acquire land of a deceased person through impersonation. Most irregularities, however, involve allowing the registration of sub-plots (part of a land parcel) without the approval of development authorities, which is not allowed after the enactment of the Registration ( Odisha Amendment) Act, 2013. In April, the govt recommended action against 18 sub-registrars for illegally registering sub-plots in Bhubaneswar. More than 3 lakh sub-plots were registered since 2014 without the permission of the development authorities. The minister said to prevent such wrongdoings, the govt is now focusing on greater use of technology and smart surveillance systems in every DSR office. "We are reviewing the reports periodically," the minister said. He was speaking to media persons ahead of a workshop of tehsildars and sub-collectors scheduled here on Wednesday. CM Mohan Charan Majhi is scheduled to inaugurate the workshop. Pujari said 317 tehsildars and 58 sub-collectors will attend the workshop physically, while revenue divisional commissioners, district collectors and other employees of the department, such as revenue inspectors and amins, will attend digitally. "During the workshop, there will be interactions with officials on their workplace difficulties and the govt's priorities so that we achieve the desired outcomes in the days to come," the minister said. Revenue department officials have been asked to come to the workshop with progress reports of their work. One year's work of the tehsils will be reviewed. "Three districts and five tehsils that have excelled in their services, such as issuance of records of rights to the landless, giving land rights to tribals and people displaced by projects, and land acquisition for railway, highway and industrial projects, will be awarded during the event," he said. "After the tehsildar workshops, a DSR workshop will also be held soon," he added.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
300 revenue officers showcaused for land sale norms flout: Minister
1 2 3 Bhubaneswar: State govt has issued show-cause notices to around 300 govt employees posted as district sub-registrars (DSRs) in the past 10 years, who are involved in suspected irregularities in land sales, revenue, and disaster management, revenue minister Suresh Pujari said here on Tuesday. "Officers who were on DSR duty between 2014 and 2024 and indulged in illegal activities are facing disciplinary proceedings. Some of them even faced criminal charges and are in jail," he said. There are 217 sub-registrar offices and 30 DSR offices in the state. Several cases of land fraud and illegalities involving DSRs have been reported in the past year. In March, a DSR and four brokers in Sambalpur were arrested for land fraud to acquire land of a deceased person through impersonation. Most irregularities, however, involve allowing the registration of sub-plots (part of a land parcel) without the approval of development authorities, which is not allowed after the enactment of the Registration (Odisha Amendment) Act, 2013. In April, the govt recommended action against 18 sub-registrars for illegally registering sub-plots in Bhubaneswar. More than 3 lakh sub-plots were registered since 2014 without the permission of the development authorities. The minister said to prevent such wrongdoings, the govt is now focusing on greater use of technology and smart surveillance systems in every DSR office. "We are reviewing the reports periodically," the minister said. He was speaking to media persons ahead of a workshop of tehsildars and sub-collectors scheduled here on Wednesday. CM Mohan Charan Majhi is scheduled to inaugurate the workshop. Pujari said 317 tehsildars and 58 sub-collectors will attend the workshop physically, while revenue divisional commissioners, district collectors and other employees of the department, such as revenue inspectors and amins, will attend digitally. "During the workshop, there will be interactions with officials on their workplace difficulties and the govt's priorities so that we achieve the desired outcomes in the days to come," the minister said. Revenue department officials have been asked to come to the workshop with progress reports of their work. One year's work of the tehsils will be reviewed. "Three districts and five tehsils that have excelled in their services, such as issuance of records of rights to the landless, giving land rights to tribals and people displaced by projects, and land acquisition for railway, highway and industrial projects, will be awarded during the event," he said. "After the tehsildar workshops, a DSR workshop will also be held soon," he added.
New Indian Express
29-05-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Sand mining to resume in Kerala rivers after long gap of nine years
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: River sand mining is set to resume in Kerala after a gap of nine years. The revenue department recently issued an order on the standard operating procedure (SOP) for mining activities. The SOP is the first step in a series of procedures involving different government departments. The SOP is based on the directives issued by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal. Under this, District Survey Reports are to be prepared for districts where mining is planned. It should be prepared by an agency approved by the National Accreditation Board for Education and Training. The state has so far prepared DSRs for 11 districts with the support of NABET-approved CSIR-NIIST. Of them, four were approved by the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) and the remaining are under different stages of review. The report has information on the mining potential of rivers in the districts and their environmental impact. The primary data would be the sand auditing report for each district prepared earlier under government supervision. So far, audits have been conducted for 32 of the 44 rivers. Of them, 17 rivers in 10 districts were recommended for restricted mining activities. They are Mogral, Uppala, Shiriya,Chandragiri, Valapattanam, Perumba, Sreekandapuram, Mahe, Kadalundi, Chaliyar, Bharathappuzha, Muvattupuzha, Periyar, Manimala, Pampa, Achankovil and Kulathupuzha. Rules amendment After the SOP, the state mining and geology department should give a letter of intent. Since existing mines and mineral rules do not provide for an LoI, an amendment should be brought to it. Following this, the RDO of a district can apply for environmental clearance. Based on the clearance, the mining and geology department will issue permits for mining from each river. As per the present plan, mining activities would be under the supervision of the Kadavu committee formed for specific banks of a river. The committee to be constituted by the district collector will have the grama panchayat president or the municipal chairperson as its ex-officio president and LSGI secretary as ex-officio secretary.
Hans India
17-05-2025
- Hans India
Police launch app for secure internal communication
Bengaluru: Benglauru Police Commissioner B Dayananda on Friday announced the launch of BCPChat—a dedicated messaging application designed to support secure, efficient, and structured communication for the internal use of the city police. He said the app has been developed exclusively for Bengaluru City Police's internal use. 'The app enables seamless exchange of critical updates such as VIP movements, media reports, DCRs (Daily Crime Reports), and DSRs (Daily Situation Reports). With data securely stored in the Karnataka State Data Centre and access restricted to authorised personnel, BCPChat ensures confidentiality,' Dayananda said during a press conference here. The app also offers intelligent search capabilities for retrieving past records and streamlines the dissemination of official orders and circulars, he added. 'The platform facilitates the distribution of official documents such as government orders, circulars, and notices to all officers or designated personnel as required. Exclusively accessible to authorised police officers, BCPChat features an efficient search module, enabling instant access to historical documents and communication,' he said.
Hindustan Times
07-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Mining policy: Now, individuals in Punjab can apply online for mining licences
Punjab government on Tuesday said that the new mining policy fundamentally shifts the control of sand and gravel resources directly into the hands of the people by allowing individual landowners to do mining after obtaining permission from the mining department. Application for mining can be submitted on the official Punjab mining portal This will effectively curb corruption and significantly increase state revenue, said finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema and mining and geology minister Barinder Goyal. Cheema and Goyal also unveiled standardised online application forms for landowner mining sites (LMS) and crusher mining sites (CRMS) on the official Punjab mining portal. Cheema said the key highlight of the new policy is the empowerment of landowners as under this revamped framework, landowners will now have the direct right to mine sand and gravel on their land without the need for auctions. 'We are committed to ensuring complete transparency and accountability in the mining sector, in contrast to the previous SAD-BJP and Congress regimes that encouraged illegal mining to fill their coffers,' Cheema said. Cheema said that the new mining policy incorporates robust technological measures to eradicate illegal mining activities with the mandatory deployment of cameras and radio frequency identification (RFID) surveillance across mining sites and transportation routes. 'This pivotal change would eliminate the role of intermediaries and potential for monopolisation, placing the power directly with the rightful owners of the land,' Cheema said. Highlighting online mining application procedures, the FM said landowners can now seamlessly apply for mining permissions through a user-centric interface that prioritises accessibility and simplicity. The applications will be processed with unprecedented expediency, ensuring that eligible landowners can commence legitimate mining operations without procedural impediments, he said Goyal said that this initiative features immediate application availability for sites already included in approved district survey reports (DSRs), alongside a streamlined pathway for landowners with mineral-bearing lands not yet included in DSRs to approach district administration or department of mines & geology through the district mining officer. 'The simplified application forms minimise documentation requirements, focusing only on essential credentials including landowner details, land particulars and mining proposals,' Goyal said. State not allowed to explore potash reserves: Goyal Goyal accused the Centre of 'discriminating' against the state on the issue of exploration of potash whose reserves were discovered in Muktsar and Abohar. Goyal said Punjab is facing 'unjustifiable' treatment regarding the development of its valuable potash deposits, a mineral resource that could bring tremendous economic and agricultural benefits to both the state and the nation. 'Despite the discovery of substantial potash reserves near Muktsar and Abohar regions, an area bordering Rajasthan where similar deposits have been found, the Union government has consistently withheld necessary approvals for further exploration and development,' Goyal said here. 'Potash is a crucial mineral that is not found elsewhere in the country. Currently, India imports 100% of its potash requirements, which significantly depletes our foreign exchange reserves,' the minister said. Stating that discrimination is evident in the allocation of exploration efforts, he said while 158 drilling sites have been set up in the adjacent area in Rajasthan to determine the location, quality, and quantity of potash deposits, merely nine drilling sites have been permitted in Punjab. 'This glaring disparity was formally raised during a recent all-India mining and geology ministers' conclave in Odisha,' he said. 'I brought this matter to the attention of Union minister G Kishan Reddy, who invited me to visit the site and subsequently meet him in Delhi for comprehensive discussions,' he said. Goyal said that potash extraction would occur about 450 metres below the surface, with minimal disruption to agricultural activities thus dispelling widespread misconceptions among residents who feared their lands would be permanently acquired. The test drilling required only a negligible portion of land, one evaluation site utilised just a fraction of a 25-acre agricultural plot, he pointed out. 'The development of domestic potash resources would significantly advance national self-reliance, substantially reducing India's dependence on international markets and conserving valuable foreign exchange,' he said To be sure, according to the assessment made by the Geological Survey of India (GSI), the reserves are not likely to be harnessed, at least for the next few years. Officials said the assessment made by the central agency so far says it may not be economically viable to mine potash as the mineral has a low concentration of 7-10%.
