Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Friday raised the issue of Pong Dam and expressed disappointment on the fact that the Rajasthan Government is yet to give 15.625 acres of land to the Pong Dam oustees.
“If Rajasthan Government shows its lackadaisical approach towards the issue, the Himachal Government would approach the Supreme Court to get justice to the Pong dam oustees,” said Virbhadra Singh.
The issue was raised in a meeting of the State-level Pong Dam Rehabilitation and Advisory Committee meeting held on Friday under the Chief Minister.
Despite the ruling of the Apex court which mentions that it will be the obligation of Rajasthan Government to make available to the Pong Dam oustees an equivalent extent of irrigable land and the original oustees or alottee shall be put back in possession of the land allotted to him, Rajasthan Government was not serious to solve the vexed issue and has shown its inability to re-locate the land to the Pong Dam oustees and remove the encroachers.
The CM suggested that even if the original allottee was not available as of today, his legal heir/heirs would be eligible for the compensation or use of ‘Poda Fund’ or for entering into appeal for the allotment of the plot of land in Rajasthan.
He said that it was rather disappointing that the Rajasthan Government was to give 15.625 acres of land to the Pong Dam oustees but the matter was pending since last many years.
Virbhadra said that Himachal Government wants to explore the last possibility by arranging a meeting with the chairman of high Power committee constituted for the purpose and Rajasthan Government regarding re-habilitation of oustees and if the Rajasthan Government shows its lackadaisical approach towards the issue, the State Government would approach the Supreme Court to get justice to the Pong dam oustees.
The CM said the Government was now not in a mood to have a re-look on the issue as since 17 meetings (the last on February of this month) of the High Powered Committee had been held and nothing concrete had come out of them which shows the lack of positive approach on the part of Rajasthan authorities to adhere to the tripartite agreement.
He said that 1188 murabas of land which was handed over to the oustees and later given to the people of Rajasthan should be looked into as the ruling of Supreme Court. It should also be enquired that under which and whose discretion/direction, the 1188 plots were given back to the Rajasthan people, he added.
The plea of the oustees to get the irrigated land reserved for them in Ganganagar and Anupgarh districts is not being heard and Rajasthan Government was offering them barren land without any facilities of roads, drinking water, education among others at Mohangarh, Ramgarh and Nachna in Bikaner district and had failed to remove the encroachers who were hand-in-glove with the land mafia active in Rajasthan and luring the oustees, he said.
“Despite the issues being raked up forcefully in the meetings it seems that the State Government has no option but to knock the doors of the Supreme Court again” said the Chief Minister, adding that a visit to Rajasthan in the month of January by the Revenue Minister and the senior officers will be a last attempt in this direction and if still the oustees don’t get justice, the Himachal Government will file contempt with the apex court.
Notably, 75,268 acres of land was submerged in the Pong dam in which 226 villages were submerged completely and 113 villages were partially affected. The Pong dam is direct source of water for Indira Gandhi Canal Project (IGNP) in Rajasthan. Out of the total 20722 displaced families, 16352 were found eligible for the allotment of land in Rajasthan.