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The Punjab and Haryana High Court has issued an interim order to halt the consolidation of a 3,184-acre area in Faridabad's Kot while hearing a petition alleging that the process was being used to "privatise" common village land and the Aravalis. Residents have opposed land consolidation in Kot, arguing that the government should not proceed with the process until common land, known as 'shamlat,' is identified and handed over to the village, as directed by the Supreme Court in 2012.
The heart of the dispute is the process to identify and demarcate common land, protected Aravali land, and privately-owned land in Kot. Land categorized as shamlat deh is intended for the benefit of the village and cannot be sold or used for private purposes.
Petitioner Kesar Singh, a village sarpanch, alleged that an influential party had acquired around 1,500 acres of land in Kot between 2014 and 2019, and consolidation was being carried out for that purpose.
Revenue records and data by the forest department show that most of the area under focus is shamlat, including protected Aravali land that is not suitable for farming. About 91% of the 3,184 acres is shamlat, although the exact area is yet to be defined. This includes uncultivable hills where non-forest activities are prohibited, foothills, and barren land.
Singh argued that the entire consolidation process was wrong, as the revenue department was not aware of which area was shamlat deh, gair mumkin pahar, or private land. Activists also backed the villagers, stating that land consolidation without identifying the exact area that falls under shamlat deh contravenes the 2012 Supreme Court order, which directed the government to identify and restore village common lands to the panchayats.
Environmentalists have raised concerns that Kot is close to the protected Mangar Bani forests, and the area has a remarkable diversity of trees, wildlife, and around 230 species of birds. They argue that steps should be taken to conserve this natural biodiversity rather than handing it over to companies.
The Haryana government officials have refuted the allegations, stating that consolidation was aimed at private land, and shamlat land was never part of the consolidation. A senior official from the Consolidation of Land Holdings and Land Records, Haryana, also stated that gair-mumkin pahar would be kept in its original state.
Consolidation in Kot was first proposed in 2011. However, after several objections, the government withdrew its proposal. In 2013 the government tried once again to introduce the proposal but was blocked by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). A proposal resurfaced in 2018, but the government did not take it forward. After another attempt in 2019, the NGT allowed the government to proceed with consolidation but required it to ensure that protected Aravali land was not disturbed. In July 2021, the Haryana government withdrew this plan again, but on November 11, 2021, it took a U-turn and said that land consolidation in Kot would help improve cultivation. The next hearing in the case is on August 1.
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