Lok Sabha Question No. 1642 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-02-11
Subject: Encroachment on Defence Land
Ministry: DEFENCE
Asked by: Su Thirunavukkarasar, Nama Nageswara Rao, Ravneet Singh, Adoor Prakash

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

## DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1642

TO BE ANSWERED ON 11 TH  FEBRUARY, 2022

## ENCROACHMENT ON DEFENCE LAND

1642.  SHRI THIRUNAVUKKARASAR SU: SHRI NAMA NAGESWARA RAO: SHRI RAVNEET SINGH BITTU: ADV. ADOOR PRAKASH:

Will the Minister of DEFENCE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has undertaken a survey of defence land in the country including in and around the cantonment areas;
- (b)  if  so,  the  details  of  the  findings  thereof  along  with  the  follow-up  action  taken  by  the Government after the completion of the survey;
- (c)  whether  the  Government  has  identified  encroachment  on  defence  land  through  the  digital survey and if so, the details thereof;
- (d)  the  details  of  defence  land  encroached  upon  in  various  States  along  with  the  defence  land evacuated from encroachment during the last three years, location and State/UT-wise;
- (e) the details of cases of encroachment on defence land pending in various courts; and
- (f)  whether  the  Government  proposes  to  review  the  management  of  defence  land,  if  so,  the details thereof along with the steps taken by the Government to remove encroachments/constructions  from  defence  land  indicating  the  action  taken  against  the  erring officials in this regard, State/UT-wise?

## A  N  S  W  E  R

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

(SHRI AJAY BHATT)

- (a) Yes, Sir. Government has undertaken Survey of defence land in the country including in and around the Cantonment areas. The same has been completed in December 2021.
- (b) & (c):   After reconciliation of Survey outcomes, the Survey reports are finalized by Defence Estates Officers. The reports have not yet been received in the Ministry. Certain encroachments have also been identified by the Defence Estates officers during the survey of the defence land which will form part of Survey reports.

(d)   A total of 9355.2588 acres of defence land is under encroachment. The State-wise details are enclosed as Annexure-I. The State-wise details of encroachments removed during the last 03 years are enclosed as Annexure-II.

(e)   As reported by DGDE, 367 number of cases relating to encroachment on defence land are pending in various Courts.

(f)   Necessary steps have been taken by the Govt for efficient management of defence land as mentioned below:

- (i) Modern survey technologies viz. survey through drone and satellite imagery have been adopted to complete survey of defence land.
- (ii) Threat  matrix  for  defence  land  has  been  prepared  and  vulnerability  of  vacant  defence land  prone  to  encroachment  has  been  assessed  for  better  vigil  of  such  lands  where  threat  of encroachment is very high.

(iii) Government  has  sanctioned  project  and  allocated  funds  for  construction  of  boundary wall/boundary  pillars/  fence  for  protection  of  vacant  defence  lands  which  are  prone  to encroachment.

- (iv) Regular inspection of Defence Lands is carried out by the concerned officers and they are required to submit annual certificates as per rules.
- (v) Defence land records have been digitized.
- (vi) A Land Management System has been put in place wherein GIS layers of encroachments have been developed for monitoring of progress on removal of encroachments.

(vii) Defence Land Audit has been institutionalized from 2011-12 as a continuing process.

*****

## ANNEXURE-I REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY TO PART (d) OF LOK SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  1642  FOR  ANSWER  ON  11.02.2022  REGARDING 'ENCROACHMENT ON DEFENCE LAND'.

## Total defence land under encroachment

| S.No.   | State               |   Area (in acres) |
|---------|---------------------|-------------------|
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh      |          107.412  |
| 2       | A&N                 |           23.9    |
| 3       | Assam               |          460.54   |
| 4       | Arunachal Pradesh   |           87.8141 |
| 5       | Bihar               |          477.072  |
| 6       | Chandigarh          |            0      |
| 7       | Chattisgarh         |          165.768  |
| 8       | Dadra &Nagar Haveli |            0      |
| 9       | Daman &Diu          |            0      |
| 10      | Delhi               |          147.451  |
| 11      | Goa                 |            5.1166 |
| 12      | Gujarat             |          274.797  |
| 13      | Haryana             |          504.566  |
| 14      | Himachal Pradesh    |           42.7876 |
| 15      | J&K                 |          339.784  |
| 16      | Jharkhand           |          304.912  |
| 17      | Karnataka           |          131.792  |
| 18      | Kerala              |            2.6739 |
| 19      | Lakshadweep         |            0.08   |
| 20      | Maharashtra         |          905.129  |
| 21      | Madhya Pradesh      |         1678.94   |
| 22      | Manipur             |            6.1308 |
| 23      | Meghalaya           |           11.0855 |
| 24      | Mizoram             |            0      |
| 25      | Nagaland            |          357.53   |
| 26      | Odisha              |            0      |
| 27      | Pudducherry         |            0      |
| 28      | Punjab              |          239.482  |
| 29      | Rajasthan           |          476.452  |
| 30      | Sikkim              |            0.2903 |
| 31      | Telangana           |           60.4318 |
| 32      | Tamilnadu           |           92.8137 |
| 33      | Tripura             |            1      |
| 34      | U.P.                |         1838.23   |
| 35      | Uttarakhand         |           51.7232 |
| 36      | West Bengal         |          559.555  |
| Total   | Total               |         9355.26   |

## ANNEXURE-II  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO PART  (d)  OF  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  1642  FOR  ANSWER  ON  11.02.2022  REGARDING 'ENCROACHMENT ON DEFENCE LAND'.

Total encroachment removed during last 03 years

| S.No.           | State               | Area (in acres)   |
|-----------------|---------------------|-------------------|
| 1               | Andhra Pradesh      | 0.00373           |
| 2               | A&N                 | 0                 |
| 3               | Assam               | 0.055             |
| 4               | Arunachal Pradesh   | 0                 |
| 5               | Bihar               | 6.0323            |
| 6               | Chandigarh          | 0.0258            |
| 7               | Chattisgarh         | 0                 |
| 8               | Dadra &Nagar Haveli | 0                 |
| 9               | Daman &Diu          | 0                 |
| 10              | Delhi               | 0                 |
| 11              | Goa                 | 0                 |
| 12              | Gujarat             | 7.0487            |
| 13              | Haryana             | 42.1725           |
| 14              | Himachal Pradesh    | 19.8188           |
| 15              | J&K                 | 0.597             |
| 16              | Jharkhand           | 0.02              |
| 17              | Karnataka           | 0                 |
| 18              | Kerala              | 0.018             |
| 19              | Lakshadweep         |                   |
| 20              | Maharashtra         | 11.6864           |
| 21              | Madhya Pradesh      | 55.1035           |
| 22              | Manipur             | 0                 |
| 23              | Meghalaya           | 0                 |
| 24              | Mizoram             | 0                 |
| 25              | Nagaland            | 0                 |
| 26              | Odisha              | 0                 |
| 27              | Pudducherry         | 0                 |
| 28              | Punjab              | 43.3637           |
| 29              | Rajasthan           | 1.7949            |
| 30              | Sikkim              | 0                 |
| 31              | Telangana           | 0                 |
| 32              | Tamilnadu           | 53.4858           |
| 33              | Tripura             | 0                 |
| 34              | U.P.                | 381.4073          |
| 35              | Uttarakhand         | 5.3928            |
| 36              | West Bengal         | 0                 |
| Total 628.02623 | Total 628.02623     | Total 628.02623   |