Only 2% of 4 lakh hectares of grazing land encroached: Maharashtra government to Bombay High Court

The Maharashtra government informed Bombay High Court on Thursday that out of the 4.52 lakh hectares of land used for cattle grazing in the State, only around 2 percent is encroached..An affidavit filed by the Joint Secretary, Revenue and Forest Department of Maharashtra stated that 2,22,153 illegal constructions or structures were found on the 4,52,121 hectares of land available in the Maharashtra for grazing. These structures occupied 10,089 hectares of land within the State which came to 2.23% of the total grazing land in the State, it was submitted.The affidavit further pointed out that in compliance with a Supreme Court order, a government resolution had been issued by the cabinet in July 2011 imposing restrictions on use of the land designated as 'gairan' lands (open land for grazing) and for removing encroachments on it. The government was responding to a suo motu public interest litigation petition initiated by the Court against unauthorised encroachments on grazing lands.A bench led by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta on Thursday stayed further regularization of any encroachment by any authority/officer of the Government until further orders of this Court.The Court also asked the authorities to file an affidavit including a policy and roadmap for removing the remaining encroachments..The authorities submitted that they have removed 24,513 encroachments from July 12, 2011 to September 15, 2022. Further, 12,652 encroachments were regularised till July 12, 2011.Advocate Ashutosh Kulkarni, amicus appointed by the Court, pointed out that prior to July 2011, none of the regulations of the State provided for regularisation of the illegal structures.The Bench, therefore, sought to know under what provisions or norms had the earlier encroachments (ones existing before July 2011) been regularised by the State.State counsel PP Kakade and Manish Pabale sought time to respond to the issue which was allowed.The matter will be heard next on November 17, 2022..The Court had taken suo motu cognizance of the issue while disposing of a public interest litigation which sought directions to the State to take action against encroachments on 'gairan' lands. The PIL had sought specific action against a lawyer who, according to petitioner, was encroaching gairan land located in the petitioner's village in Kolhapur and had begun construction of a private structure. Chief government pleader PP Kakade had informed the Court that appropriate action had been initiated against the lawyer. The Court also noted that the petitioner was pursuing a cause against the lawyer under the garb of a PIL and had, therefore, dismissed the PIL.However, noting that there was large scale encroachments on gairan lands belonging to the government, the Court had stated it could not turn a blind eye to such illegalities and had, hence, taken suo motu cognizance of the issue. .[Read order]