Odisha govt wonders how CDA allowed OOA to build shops sans approval

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar/Cuttack, Mar 3:

Odisha government on Monday raised questions on construction of Barabati Palace and shops on a disputed land adjacent to the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack and the plan approval by the authorities since the lease for the land was pending renewal.

Presiding over a a high-level meeting at the State Secretariat in the state capital, additional chief secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management, Dr Taradatt asked the authorities as to how the commercial blocks in the Barabati palace premises were erected in the absence of lease renewal and plan approval.

Besides, Dr Taradatt, on February 27, had directed the Cuttack district collector, Cuttack Development Authority (CDA) and two Additional District Magistrates to submit detailed report within a week on the Odisha Olympic Association (OOA), Barabati Palace and other institutions associated with it.

On February 24, Taradatt had visited the Barabati Palace and held discussions with district administration officials.

It is learnt that the senior bureaucrat has asked the officials to re-conduct measurement of the Barabati Stadium in connection with the land dispute involving OOA and re-examine the land records.

As per the directives of Taradatt, a team comprising district collector, Revenue department field staff and amins (surveyors) under the supervision of tehsildar Cuttack (Sadar) would verify how much land has been encroached by the OOA. Besides, the tehsildar would verify the RoR (Record of Rights) of the disputed property.

In addition to this, Taradatt has directed to file a report on use of the commercial blocks within five days.

Action would be initiated against the officials if wrongdoings would be found in the inquiry report, sources said.

Notably, the district collector would examine whether 1.939 acre land was allotted to the OOA, and 1.222 acre land was erroneously entered in favour of OOA by the Land Records and Settlement department. He would also verify the audit reports and the directives given by the courts.

The collector would inspect how much land has been encroached and what action has been initiated against the violator, sources added.