Tamil Nadu government constitutes high-powered committee to resolve issues over ryotwari patta land

The Tamil Nadu government has decided to stop the “unilateral” blocking of registration of ryotwari land by the Registration Department based on requests from officials of other departments, who cite pre-UDR records and the inam fair register to prevent registration of such ryotwari land by individuals.

The government has also constituted a high-powered committee to resolve issues for removal of blockage of registration of land settled as ryotwari patta land. The Chief Secretary would lead the seven-member committee. The Secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department; the Secretary of the department seeking blocking/unblocking; the Commissioner of Land Administration, the Inspector-General of Registration; the Director of Survey and Settlement; and the Secretary of the Law Department are the other members. All requests for blocking registration are to be placed before this committee.

The committee’s concurrence would henceforth be required for blocking/unblocking of registration or blocking/unblocking of Tamil Nilam online records. The decision to constitute the committee followed a meeting in August this year to resolve issues relating to blocking/unblocking of land settled as ryotwari patta land.

In the recent past, officials of the Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department have been filing appeals to the Revenue Department for cancellation of pattas in the name of individuals in the UDR records. They further sought orders in favour of temples, as the land was recorded in the name of temples in the pre-UDR records and the inam fair register. Officials of the HR&CE Department have been writing to the Sub-Registrars and the District Registrars to block the land to restrain registration.

“Such actions nullify pattas legally granted under Sections 8(2)(i)(b) and Section 8(2)(ii) of the Tamil Nadu Act, 30/1963 [Tamil Nadu Minor Inams (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1963]. …these unilateral instructions are not proper and the Registration Department should not unilaterally block lands, restraining registration, without specific instructions from the Government or the Revenue Department,” according to a government order issued by the Revenue Department.