With the Assembly having passed the budgets of several departments on Thursday, the budget of the revenue department saw the members, cutting across the party lines, enthusiastically participating in it. This resulted the budget being passed after over three hours’ animated discussion. While participating in the debate, MlA Bharat Singh Choudhary and Munna Singh Chouhan drew the attention of the House to the State Government acquiring land of the farmers at the rate of Rs 50 per square meter in the name of Rishikesh- Karnprayag railway line. They said that the acquisition is insupportable in view of the Central land compensation act having barred acquisition of irrigated land or the multi- crop land. They further said that the amount being given to the land losers is abysmally low as compared to the market prices.
MlA Harish Dhami brought a cut motion on revenue department’s budget, saying that the hill-based farmers are not getting their compensation in the revenue villages. BJP MlA Harbhajan Singh Cheema informed the House that the farmers being allowed lease of their land in Udhamsinghnagar district , the lease has not been uploaded in the official records on the computers. Suresh Rathore and Deshraj Karanwal said that lands being acquired by the government in the name of widening roads in Tehri, Pauri, Rudraprayag and Chamoli districts , the land losers are not being given compensation.
Qazi Nizamuddin alleged that nothing is being done in the matter of land consolidation despite the process having started in 1974. Harish Dhami alleged that nothing has happened despite the State Government having announced formation of several revenue villages in his constituency Dharchula.