Land grab by former chief secy: Govt to take back 70 acre land

Bhubaneswar/ Jajpur: The State government will reclaim land illegally taken over by former chief secretary of Odisha, Rabi Narayan Das. While hearing the case, the Land Records and Settlement commissioner Ashok Kumar Tarenia has ordered to repossess the land and bring it back to the government’s land bank.

As per allegations, Das had illegally taken ownership of 70 acre land in the Salijanga Mouza of Danagadi Tehsil in Jajpur. The Jajpur collector had urged the Land Records and Settlement commissioner to reinstate the status of the land to forest land.

Notably, the said piece of land was under Sukinda estate and its status was categorized as forest land since 1927-28. In 1952-53, even after Sukinda Estate was merged with the State government, the status of the land remained unchanged.

However, the authorities alleged that the land was illegally mutated to the name of Das. In this regard, notices have been served to the people who bought the land from Das and his family members.

Meanwhile, despite repeated contacts, Das was not available for his comment on the matter.