NT Reporter
Panaji
A total of 5.1166 acres of defence land has been encroached upon in Goa, while 9.47 acres is under litigation, according to a reply tabled by Union Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth in the Lok Sabha on Friday during the winter session
of Parliament.
The information was provided in response to a question from MP Pushpendra Saroj, who sought state-wise details of defence land lying unused, encroached or under litigation.
The minister said defence land is utilised for bona fide military purposes and to meet the strategic, operational and security requirements of the Armed Forces.
The ministry stated that about 45,906 acres of vacant defence land has been identified as surplus to the needs of the Armed Forces.
The reply added that out of around 18 lakh acres of defence land nationwide, about 11,152 acres is under encroachment and about 8,113 acres is under litigation.
The ministry said computerisation of defence land records under the ‘Raksha Bhoomi’ project has been completed.
Defence land records contained in the General Land Registers and Military Land Registers have been entered into the software and the data is updated periodically. The information has been made accessible to Service Headquarters.
In addition, all buildings under the Defence Estates Organisation, including Cantonment Boards, have been geo-tagged. Public access to defence land data is restricted for security reasons, the ministry said.
It may be noted that the Goa government has frequently attempted to reclaim land from defence authorities, particularly the Army in Panaji, for public infrastructure expansion related to traffic and development, though progress has remained slow, the reply said.
