West Bengal Amends Land Policy to Allot Plots on Freehold Basis
With an eye on generating revenue, the Bengal Government has amended its 2012 land allotment policy to transfer land for commercial purposes on freehold basis which is more lucrative instead the earlier leasehold policy basis. As per the state’s land allotment policy framed in 2012, the land parcels could be transferred only on long-term lease for a maximum of 99 years. Overwhelmed by the huge response from private players who are quoting high bids to get land across the city, the Bengal Government has amended its land allotment policy, allowing land other than the vested under it khaas possession to be transferred for commercial purposes on freehold basis subject to approval from the state cabinet. As per the state’s land allotment policy framed in 2012, land parcels could be transferred only on a long-term lease for a maximum of 99 years. During the front tenure, many land parcels in and around the city were distributed on freehold basis. After coming to power in 2011, the Mamata Banerjee government stopped freehold allotment following complaints of irregularities in land use and came up with a lease-only policy to keep the ownership rights in its hands and bring transparency in dealing with public land assets. However with demand for land on the rise for real-estate purposes and rates increasing in coveted areas with infrastructure and social amenities like mall, metro alignment and flyover, the government wants to maximize revenue earnings since the capital appreciation of freehold land is much higher than the leasehold ones. The government recently received a bid of over Rs 400 crore for a 5.6 acre land parcel at Alipore and another of Rs 203 crore for a 6.2 acre plot for a housing project in Raj-arhat. For the Alipore plot, Hidco had fixed a starting bid price of Rs 236. 7 crore. Following the latest amendments in the allotment policy the government is now planning to e-auction for four land parcels located in Nonadanga, behind Silver Spring and on BL Saja Road, on freehold basis.
Tags : West Bengal Land Policy Plots Bengal Government commercial Mamata Banerjee revenue