District Magistrates in Uttarakhand have been asked not to clear any proposal from outsiders to buy land in the state for the purpose of agriculture or horticulture till the submission of the report of the committee on land laws of the state.

An order to this effect was issued to all DMs on Sunday on the instructions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. It has been decided in public interest that till the submission of the report of the Land Law Committee or till further orders, the District Magistrates will not have the final say in granting permission to proposals from persons outside Uttarakhand to purchase land for the purpose of agriculture and horticulture in the state, an official release here said. Dhami held a high-level meeting on Sunday to discuss the issue and directed officials that a detailed public hearing should be conducted by the committee to review land laws of the state in which people and experts from various fields should be heard.

According to an amendment made in 2004 in Section 154 of the Uttar Pradesh Zamindari and Land System Act 1950, persons who are not holders of immovable property in the state of Uttarakhand before September 12, 2003, are allowed to purchase land for the purpose of agriculture and horticulture from the District Magistrate.

A drafting committee has been constituted by the state government for preparing new land laws for the state.

Earlier also, the chief minister had ordered background verification of buyers from outside before they purchase land in the state. The draft should be prepared expeditiously by the committee on the basis of suggestions from experts and people from different walks of life, Dhami said.

All decisions are being taken by the state government in the interest of the state. The government will continuously work in accordance with the sentiments of the people of the state and their interest which is paramount, he said.

There were protests in various districts of the state recently in which demands were raised for making stricter laws for outsiders to buy land in the state.

An amendment was made in land laws of the state during the chief ministership of ND Tiwari allowing outsiders to buy land in the hill areas of the state only up to a limit of 500 sqm.

The limit was further reduced to 250 sqm during the tenure of BC Khanduri. However, in 2017 former chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat lifted the restriction to give a boost to investments in the hill areas.

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