President Denies Grabbing Pune Land For Post-Retirement House
[ Updated 12 Apr 2012, 22:57:26 ]
New Delhi, Apr 12: The President Ms Pratibha Patil has denied media reports that prime Pune cantonment land was "grabbed" to build a post-retirement house for her.
A press release issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan said, a section of the media has been reporting that the President l has "grabbed" land much in excess of her entitlement to build her post retirement home in Pune.
The press release said, these news items were facturally incorrect and malicious.
Giving details about the issue, the release said:
"To say that a house is being constructed for occupation by the President on demission of office by "snatching" or "grabbing" land meant for soldiers is factually incorrect and malicious. The land belongs to the Ministry of Defence and will continue to remain with the Ministry of Defence.
"The title of the land is not being alienated in any manner whatsoever. The ownership of both the land and the house she will be occupying will continue to remain vested in the government and therefore there is no substance in the allegation of personal gains.
"The President is entitled to accommodation after demission of office as provided for under the President's Emoluments and Pensions Act, 1951.
"It is therefore the legitimate entitlement of the President to occupy an accommodation provided by the government and all former Presidents have availed this benefit.
"The only variance in the present case is that the President will be occupying a government accommodation outside Delhi.
"The said rules provide that the size of the residence to be provided to the President on demission of office shall be comparable to a residence allotted to a Minister in the Union Council of Ministers.
"It is common knowledge that houses of Union Ministers in the Lutyens' Zone area, though belong to Type VIII category, are not of any uniform size. Quite logically, therefore, the President's Emoluments and Pensions Act does not specify a fixed living area for former President's when they occupy a government accommodation.
" The mention of living area not exceeding 2000 sq. ft. is only indicative and applicable where a suitable government residence is not available and a residence is to be taken on lease/rent basis, which does not apply in the present case, since the President will be occupying a government accommodation.
"The present residence occupied in Pune is a house which was earlier occupied by an officer at the level of a Lt. Colonel.
"The house being old, needed renovation to make it suitable for residential purposes and accordingly certain additions/modifications have been taken up to suit the requirements of the President on demission of office.
"The President is not coming in the way of residential accommodation being provided to Territorial Army cadets. That only that plot of land which is to be used for accommodating the President must only be used for providing residential accommodation for soldiers lacks rationale.
"Merely because the President has chosen to reside in the Cantonment area cannot be viewed as being apathetic or indifferent to the welfare of the soldiers. Surely, the city of Pune and surrounding areas have enough alternative land available for their accommodation. "
An organisation of ex-servicemen in Pune had alleged that over fives acres of land had been alloted for purpose of her residence after she demits office later in July this year when her five-year term ends.
Suresh Patil, a retired Lt Col of the Pune-based 'Justice for Jawan', part of NGO 'Green Thumb' group, who has accessed details about the Government's measures for providing her housing in Pune, claims that a large extent of land measuring over 2.60 lakh square feet has been alloted to her in Khadki cantonment in Pune.
He claims that a house with a plinth area of 4,500 square feet is being built for her by bringing down two British-era county bungalows.
The former Army official questioned why such a large extent of land was being fenced to protect this house for Pratibha Patil, who recently made news when an RTI application brought out the fact that over Rs 205 crore were spent on her foreign travels.
Col Patil said that he had sent several RTI applications to the Army's Southern Command seeking reasons for fencing the entire five acre land with a wall but failed to get any response.
President Denies Grabbing Pune Land For Post-Retirement House
Click here for the Truth Ministry's clarification
Comment: The President will continue to be thorn for the tax payers. Her lavish family life style does nothing to reduce poverty in India. She is edifice of the false face of India! MOD dancing to her tunes. She has done nothing as Supreme Commander for the Serving Soldiers or Veterans. She goes down in history as a lady who lives in Royal Style! RTI should expose her hollowness and double speak....
Showing posts with label Cantonments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cantonments. Show all posts
Friday, April 13, 2012
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Five steps: How to steal Army land
Sandeep Unnithan
What with defense land scams getting rampant, it seems it is too easy to cheat the Army these days.
In just three years, 1,073 acres of defence land-equal to 412 football fields-has been swallowed up through encroachments by builders and private developers. The Government admitted this blandly in the Lok Sabha in March 2011, noting that encroachments in military areas have increased from 3,510.16 acres to 4,583.588 acres. The Directorate General of Defence Estates (DGDE) reported these encroachments on the 66,000 acres of land it held directly. DGDE is the department in the Ministry of Defence which is responsible for audit, accounting and financial management.
Over 17 lakh acres of defence land worth Rs.20 lakh crore is vulnerable to encroachment. Of this, nearly 11,000 acres have been stolen, and no one cares. Records for land worth thousands of crores of rupees are maintained in tattered paper registers instead of secure electronic databases. The land is not demarcated. Worse, a corrupt nexus of army brass, defence estates officials and builders continue to bite large chunks out of this land bank.
The DGDE has 1,251 officials to administer defence land, but no one has been held accountable for failing to protect it. The defence ministry is yet to table its proposed Defence Land Management Bill in Parliament. If there was a scamster’s manual for looting defence land, it would read something like this:
1. IDENTIFY PLIABLE DEFENCE AND ARMY OFFICIALS
Nexus between the officials has been found in most land scams that have been unearthed.
On January 31, the CBI raided the Pune home of former army vice chief Lt-General (Retd) Nobel Thamburaj for his alleged involvement in a land scam. An army press release said that Lt-General Thamburaj had arrived at an outof-court settlement with a builder that resulted in the government losing 0.96 acres of prime defence land worth Rs.45 crore in the Pune cantonment area.
In most military land scams unearthed over the past few years, defence estates officials have been found to be hand-in-glove with army officials and private developers. The reasons are not far to see. The DGDE is represented by defence estates officers in military stations. These officials are custodians of defence land. The army uses the land. A General Officer Commanding of a military area heads the local administration in all of the 62 cantonment boards across the country. The board issues sanctions for construction of buildings within the cantonment area.
2. TARGET LAND NOT IN MILITARY RECORDS
Land sharks take advantage of loopholes in land documentation.
Roughly 25 per cent of all defence land has not been ‘mutated’ or not transferred to the land records of the defence estates department.
Bureaucratic lethargy is to blame for this. When the land-holding is ambiguous, it becomes ripe for exploitation by land sharks. In the Adarsh scam for instance, the housing society that was formed by retired military officials and defence estates officials homed in on a football fieldsized plot of prime land in Colaba, South Mumbai. The land was held by the army but owned by the state government. No records were available. The combination of defence estates and armed forces officials moved in to build a commercial residential tower.
3. SURREPTITIOUSLY ENCROACH DEFENCE LAND
Builders encircle defence land after buying private plots around it.
Unused defence land is sometimes not even fenced. At times, corrupt land sharks are known to buy private land around vacant defence land and then gradually encircle it. This happened in the case of the Srinagar air force land scam uncovered in 2009.
Nearly 200 acres of prime defence land worth over Rs.1,500 crore was quietly sold over the years. The defence estates officials issued no-objection certificates to show that the land never belonged to the defence ministry despite having bought it in 1966.
Camping grounds, another colonial relic located on the outskirts of military areas, are also considered fair game. The DGDE is meant to conduct land audits to assess the state of its land bank. The last major audit was carried out in 2000. Each year the department presents shrinking estimates of its landholding. The encroachments are termed ‘a complex socio-economic problem’. Surveys of disputed land holdings, ordered to buy time, are carried out with the state government and can take over five years.
Responsibility for the protection of the land is diffused and the landholding opaque. Guilty officials are punished only if a hue and cry is raised in public. The CBI is now investigating three defence land scams- Adarsh, Kandivli and at Lohegaon, Pune. In the Lohegaon land scam unearthed in 2011, three scamsters prepared fake documents claiming ownership of about 69 acres of defence land worth Rs.800 crore.
4. TARGET OLD GRANT BUNGALOWS
Buyers propose tearing down old houses and constructing a new residential building on it. Old grant bungalows are Britishera dwellings on prime government land. These bungalows dot most military stations and cantonments. They are now valuable for their land which is owned by the government. The modus operandi is for the builder to approach the original tenants and buy them out.
The bungalows are ‘dehired’- the process by which the government stops collecting lease. The builder then approaches the cantonment board with a proposal for demolishing the ‘dilapidated’ building and constructing a new residential building on it. An audit done by the Comptroller and Auditor General in 2011 mentions 16 such bungalows in military areas of Lucknow, Almora, Kanpur, Ranikhet and Bareilly as being illegally sold for Rs.150 crore. Several other such cases are under the scanner of audit authorities. In the Meerut cantonment, schools, colleges and residential properties have been built on old grant bungalows. A CAG report of 2010 mentions how the Residency Club was built on an old grant bungalow in the Pune cantonment.
5. CHALLENGE THE TITLE OF DEFENCE LAND IN COURT
Court proceedings can drag on for decades because ofweak legal defence.
Among the weakest links in the DGDE is its inability to protect encroached defence land in court. There are an estimated 13,000 pending cases relating to defence land in various courts. The way these cases are handled causes concern. The Government does not file its replies in time and court proceedings drag on for decades. A report prepared by the Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) suggests that the defence estates department get a separate legal department to fight their cases. This suggestion has gone unheeded.
“Defence estates officials pose as victims of the situation. It suits corrupt officials to have a weak legal defence put up by the Government so that they lose in court,” says a defence ministry official. CGDA officials say land worth “thousands of crores” is locked in legal disputes all over the country. A case in point is a six-acre plot of defence land in Secunderabad on which the defence accounts department built houses. A private firm won a favourable verdict from the high court in 2002. The case continues in the Supreme Court after the defence ministry appealed against this verdict.
The options for the ministry are grim in this case. They have to either demolish all the buildings, hand the land back to the private society or cough up an estimated Rs.100 crore, the market value of the land.
Five steps: How to steal Army land
The defenders of our country and its borders are fighting a secret enemy, which has threatened their dignity and integrity - greed. And at the centre of greed is the humongous amount of land that has been given to the Indian Army by the government for the purpose of establishing its cantonments, offices, residential property, etc. In fact, the Ministry of Defence is the biggest landholder in the government with a holding of 17.31 lakh acres of land across the country.
Read more at:
Land Sharks and Senior Officers in the Land Grab Mode
What with defense land scams getting rampant, it seems it is too easy to cheat the Army these days.
In just three years, 1,073 acres of defence land-equal to 412 football fields-has been swallowed up through encroachments by builders and private developers. The Government admitted this blandly in the Lok Sabha in March 2011, noting that encroachments in military areas have increased from 3,510.16 acres to 4,583.588 acres. The Directorate General of Defence Estates (DGDE) reported these encroachments on the 66,000 acres of land it held directly. DGDE is the department in the Ministry of Defence which is responsible for audit, accounting and financial management.
Over 17 lakh acres of defence land worth Rs.20 lakh crore is vulnerable to encroachment. Of this, nearly 11,000 acres have been stolen, and no one cares. Records for land worth thousands of crores of rupees are maintained in tattered paper registers instead of secure electronic databases. The land is not demarcated. Worse, a corrupt nexus of army brass, defence estates officials and builders continue to bite large chunks out of this land bank.
The DGDE has 1,251 officials to administer defence land, but no one has been held accountable for failing to protect it. The defence ministry is yet to table its proposed Defence Land Management Bill in Parliament. If there was a scamster’s manual for looting defence land, it would read something like this:
1. IDENTIFY PLIABLE DEFENCE AND ARMY OFFICIALS
Nexus between the officials has been found in most land scams that have been unearthed.
On January 31, the CBI raided the Pune home of former army vice chief Lt-General (Retd) Nobel Thamburaj for his alleged involvement in a land scam. An army press release said that Lt-General Thamburaj had arrived at an outof-court settlement with a builder that resulted in the government losing 0.96 acres of prime defence land worth Rs.45 crore in the Pune cantonment area.
In most military land scams unearthed over the past few years, defence estates officials have been found to be hand-in-glove with army officials and private developers. The reasons are not far to see. The DGDE is represented by defence estates officers in military stations. These officials are custodians of defence land. The army uses the land. A General Officer Commanding of a military area heads the local administration in all of the 62 cantonment boards across the country. The board issues sanctions for construction of buildings within the cantonment area.
2. TARGET LAND NOT IN MILITARY RECORDS
Land sharks take advantage of loopholes in land documentation.
Roughly 25 per cent of all defence land has not been ‘mutated’ or not transferred to the land records of the defence estates department.
Bureaucratic lethargy is to blame for this. When the land-holding is ambiguous, it becomes ripe for exploitation by land sharks. In the Adarsh scam for instance, the housing society that was formed by retired military officials and defence estates officials homed in on a football fieldsized plot of prime land in Colaba, South Mumbai. The land was held by the army but owned by the state government. No records were available. The combination of defence estates and armed forces officials moved in to build a commercial residential tower.
3. SURREPTITIOUSLY ENCROACH DEFENCE LAND
Builders encircle defence land after buying private plots around it.
Unused defence land is sometimes not even fenced. At times, corrupt land sharks are known to buy private land around vacant defence land and then gradually encircle it. This happened in the case of the Srinagar air force land scam uncovered in 2009.
Nearly 200 acres of prime defence land worth over Rs.1,500 crore was quietly sold over the years. The defence estates officials issued no-objection certificates to show that the land never belonged to the defence ministry despite having bought it in 1966.
Camping grounds, another colonial relic located on the outskirts of military areas, are also considered fair game. The DGDE is meant to conduct land audits to assess the state of its land bank. The last major audit was carried out in 2000. Each year the department presents shrinking estimates of its landholding. The encroachments are termed ‘a complex socio-economic problem’. Surveys of disputed land holdings, ordered to buy time, are carried out with the state government and can take over five years.
Responsibility for the protection of the land is diffused and the landholding opaque. Guilty officials are punished only if a hue and cry is raised in public. The CBI is now investigating three defence land scams- Adarsh, Kandivli and at Lohegaon, Pune. In the Lohegaon land scam unearthed in 2011, three scamsters prepared fake documents claiming ownership of about 69 acres of defence land worth Rs.800 crore.
4. TARGET OLD GRANT BUNGALOWS
Buyers propose tearing down old houses and constructing a new residential building on it. Old grant bungalows are Britishera dwellings on prime government land. These bungalows dot most military stations and cantonments. They are now valuable for their land which is owned by the government. The modus operandi is for the builder to approach the original tenants and buy them out.
The bungalows are ‘dehired’- the process by which the government stops collecting lease. The builder then approaches the cantonment board with a proposal for demolishing the ‘dilapidated’ building and constructing a new residential building on it. An audit done by the Comptroller and Auditor General in 2011 mentions 16 such bungalows in military areas of Lucknow, Almora, Kanpur, Ranikhet and Bareilly as being illegally sold for Rs.150 crore. Several other such cases are under the scanner of audit authorities. In the Meerut cantonment, schools, colleges and residential properties have been built on old grant bungalows. A CAG report of 2010 mentions how the Residency Club was built on an old grant bungalow in the Pune cantonment.
5. CHALLENGE THE TITLE OF DEFENCE LAND IN COURT
Court proceedings can drag on for decades because ofweak legal defence.
Among the weakest links in the DGDE is its inability to protect encroached defence land in court. There are an estimated 13,000 pending cases relating to defence land in various courts. The way these cases are handled causes concern. The Government does not file its replies in time and court proceedings drag on for decades. A report prepared by the Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) suggests that the defence estates department get a separate legal department to fight their cases. This suggestion has gone unheeded.
“Defence estates officials pose as victims of the situation. It suits corrupt officials to have a weak legal defence put up by the Government so that they lose in court,” says a defence ministry official. CGDA officials say land worth “thousands of crores” is locked in legal disputes all over the country. A case in point is a six-acre plot of defence land in Secunderabad on which the defence accounts department built houses. A private firm won a favourable verdict from the high court in 2002. The case continues in the Supreme Court after the defence ministry appealed against this verdict.
The options for the ministry are grim in this case. They have to either demolish all the buildings, hand the land back to the private society or cough up an estimated Rs.100 crore, the market value of the land.
Five steps: How to steal Army land
The defenders of our country and its borders are fighting a secret enemy, which has threatened their dignity and integrity - greed. And at the centre of greed is the humongous amount of land that has been given to the Indian Army by the government for the purpose of establishing its cantonments, offices, residential property, etc. In fact, the Ministry of Defence is the biggest landholder in the government with a holding of 17.31 lakh acres of land across the country.
Read more at:
Land Sharks and Senior Officers in the Land Grab Mode
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Defence Land Scams an update
Ministry of Defence
21-December, 2011 15:03 IST Defence Land Scams
Adarsh Housing Society and Kandivili cases are being investigated by CBI. Action shall be taken based on the recommendations of the investigation. No defence personnel has been found involved in Pune land case. Suitable action has been taken against Army personnel found involved in the Sukna land case.
It has been decided to resume Audit of defence lands which among others shall cover encroachments also.
The details of Adarsh Housing Society scam, Kandivili land scam, Pune land scam and Sukna land scam are as under:
1. Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society Case
Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society (ACHS) has constructed a multi-storied building on a land measuring approximately 3837.57 sq. mtrs, at Block VI, Colaba, Mumbai. ACHS had sought allotment of land from Government of Maharashtra for the welfare of serving and retired personnel of defence services. Prima facie, there have been irregularities and issues of concern in this regard include issue of `NOC by the Army to inter alia alienate the land in its possession in favour of ACHS; by¬passing Coastal Land Regulation Zone clearance; inclusion of civilians in the membership of the society; change of Floor Space Index; deviation from the commitments made for the welfare of defence services; disregard to security concerns of defence services etc. The Government has entrusted enquiry to CBI with a view to getting the matter thoroughly investigated and fix responsibilities.
2. Kandivili land case
As reported by Director General of Defence Estates, 13.28 acres of State Government land in village Akurli was held on hire by Army since long. In 2007, Collector, Mumbai Suburban District, allotted 5166.50 Sq Mtrs of land adjacent to Central Ordnance Depot (COD) to M/s Neo Pharma Ltd. after receiving its market value. This was objected to by COD and Defence Estates Officer (DEO) on the grounds that this formed part of Defence land on hire. Collector was also informed that COD will not permit any agency to take possession of Defence Land without approval of Ministry of Defence. However, their objections were overruled by the Collector. COD persisted with its objections and resisted handing over possession of the said land. Subsequently, at the direction of Headquarters, Southern Command, all obstacles were removed and Neo Pharma was permitted to go ahead with the planned development of the Plot.
Head Quarters Southern Command has sought that the matter be investigated at appropriate level. Army Headquarters (AHQ) recommended that the case be investigated by the CBI. After considering the matter, Government has asked AHQ to ascertain either by holding a Court of Inquiry or otherwise as to how Head Quarters Southern Command relinquished claim on the said land. The case has been investigated by a Court of Inquiry by Head Quarters Southern Command. The Court of Inquiry has been completed and case has been handed over to CBI on 30th November 2011.
3. Pune Land case
In March 2008 sanction was issued for transferring an area admeasuring 4498.56 sq. mtr. lo the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). When sanction was issued, it came to notice that while the subject land was entered in Revenue Records as `Military Line Kade’, it was not entered in the Military Lands Register of the Defence Estates Officer, Pune. There were some claimant(s) and the State Government authorities changed entry` in the Revenue records. The matter was therefore referred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The case is under investigation
Corrective action has been taken and "Military Line Kade" has been restored in the Revenue records, the land has also been entered in the Military Lands Register.
4. Sukna land case
Sukna Land case pertains to land in Chumta Tea Estate neighbouring defence land and not defence land. This is a case of incorrect issue of No Objection Certificate (NOC) by HQ 33 Corps. A Court of Inquiry was ordered by HQ Eastern Command to investigate the circumstances under which No Objection Certificate was allowed to be given and MoU agreed by HQ 33 Corps for land in Chumta Tea Estate. The Court of Inquiry has been finalized and suitable action taken against erring officials.
This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in written reply to Dr. Gyan Prakash Pilania in Rajya Sabha today. HH/NN (Release ID :79106)
Defence Land Scams
CBI to probe defence land scam
21-December, 2011 15:03 IST Defence Land Scams
Adarsh Housing Society and Kandivili cases are being investigated by CBI. Action shall be taken based on the recommendations of the investigation. No defence personnel has been found involved in Pune land case. Suitable action has been taken against Army personnel found involved in the Sukna land case.
It has been decided to resume Audit of defence lands which among others shall cover encroachments also.
The details of Adarsh Housing Society scam, Kandivili land scam, Pune land scam and Sukna land scam are as under:
1. Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society Case
Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society (ACHS) has constructed a multi-storied building on a land measuring approximately 3837.57 sq. mtrs, at Block VI, Colaba, Mumbai. ACHS had sought allotment of land from Government of Maharashtra for the welfare of serving and retired personnel of defence services. Prima facie, there have been irregularities and issues of concern in this regard include issue of `NOC by the Army to inter alia alienate the land in its possession in favour of ACHS; by¬passing Coastal Land Regulation Zone clearance; inclusion of civilians in the membership of the society; change of Floor Space Index; deviation from the commitments made for the welfare of defence services; disregard to security concerns of defence services etc. The Government has entrusted enquiry to CBI with a view to getting the matter thoroughly investigated and fix responsibilities.
2. Kandivili land case
As reported by Director General of Defence Estates, 13.28 acres of State Government land in village Akurli was held on hire by Army since long. In 2007, Collector, Mumbai Suburban District, allotted 5166.50 Sq Mtrs of land adjacent to Central Ordnance Depot (COD) to M/s Neo Pharma Ltd. after receiving its market value. This was objected to by COD and Defence Estates Officer (DEO) on the grounds that this formed part of Defence land on hire. Collector was also informed that COD will not permit any agency to take possession of Defence Land without approval of Ministry of Defence. However, their objections were overruled by the Collector. COD persisted with its objections and resisted handing over possession of the said land. Subsequently, at the direction of Headquarters, Southern Command, all obstacles were removed and Neo Pharma was permitted to go ahead with the planned development of the Plot.
Head Quarters Southern Command has sought that the matter be investigated at appropriate level. Army Headquarters (AHQ) recommended that the case be investigated by the CBI. After considering the matter, Government has asked AHQ to ascertain either by holding a Court of Inquiry or otherwise as to how Head Quarters Southern Command relinquished claim on the said land. The case has been investigated by a Court of Inquiry by Head Quarters Southern Command. The Court of Inquiry has been completed and case has been handed over to CBI on 30th November 2011.
3. Pune Land case
In March 2008 sanction was issued for transferring an area admeasuring 4498.56 sq. mtr. lo the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). When sanction was issued, it came to notice that while the subject land was entered in Revenue Records as `Military Line Kade’, it was not entered in the Military Lands Register of the Defence Estates Officer, Pune. There were some claimant(s) and the State Government authorities changed entry` in the Revenue records. The matter was therefore referred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The case is under investigation
Corrective action has been taken and "Military Line Kade" has been restored in the Revenue records, the land has also been entered in the Military Lands Register.
4. Sukna land case
Sukna Land case pertains to land in Chumta Tea Estate neighbouring defence land and not defence land. This is a case of incorrect issue of No Objection Certificate (NOC) by HQ 33 Corps. A Court of Inquiry was ordered by HQ Eastern Command to investigate the circumstances under which No Objection Certificate was allowed to be given and MoU agreed by HQ 33 Corps for land in Chumta Tea Estate. The Court of Inquiry has been finalized and suitable action taken against erring officials.
This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in written reply to Dr. Gyan Prakash Pilania in Rajya Sabha today. HH/NN (Release ID :79106)
Defence Land Scams
CBI to probe defence land scam
Monday, December 5, 2011
Military Land Scams: Culture of Corruption
Laudable aims but difficult to achieve when embedded in a culture of corruption!
DIRECTORATE GENERAL DEFENCE ESTATES
Directorate General, Defence Estates (DGDE) is the Headquarters of the Indian Defence Estates Service. DGDE provides advisory inputs on all Cantonments and Land matters to the Ministry of Defence and Service Headquarters ie Army, Navy, Air Force and other organizations under Ministry of Defence. Acquisition of lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation of displaced persons, Hiring and requisitioning of lands and buildings, are some of the responsibilities of DGDE. It also ensures implementation of Cantonments Act 2006, Policies, Rules & Regulations and Executive instructions.
DGDE has under its jurisdiction six Principal Directorates namely, Principal Directors, Central, Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-western and Western Command. Under the Principal Directorates there are 37 Defence Estates Offices and 4 ADEO Circles for management of defence lands in the country.
There are 62 Cantonment Boards. These are local bodies responsible for providing civic administration and implementing the Central Govt schemes of social welfare, public health, hygiene, safety, water supply, sanitation, urban renewal and education.
Vision
To manage defence land effectively and efficiently and provide an efficient, effective, transparent and honest civic and development oriented administration in Cantonments. To make the Indian Defence Estates Service an institution of Excellence.
Mission
Land being a scarce and precious national resource and Cantonments becoming part of urban agglomeration, Defence Estates Department would strive to achieve the following:
•Transform Cantonments into model local bodies for improving quality of life of its residents through:
1.People friendly administration
2.Effective delivery systems
3.Transparent and result-oriented governance
4.Zero tolerance to corruption and mal-practices
5.Making adequate provisions for health and education services including vocational training
6.Caring for senior citizens and the disadvantaged
•Protect environment and heritage
•Make optimum utilization of land resources
•Protection and maintenance of defence lands and land records
•Manage defence land effectively and provide help to stake-holders in land management
•Prompt problem resolution
•Be effective advisers to Government
•Leverage technology including e-governance in all aspects of administration and land management
DGDE
DIRECTORATE GENERAL DEFENCE ESTATES
Directorate General, Defence Estates (DGDE) is the Headquarters of the Indian Defence Estates Service. DGDE provides advisory inputs on all Cantonments and Land matters to the Ministry of Defence and Service Headquarters ie Army, Navy, Air Force and other organizations under Ministry of Defence. Acquisition of lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation of displaced persons, Hiring and requisitioning of lands and buildings, are some of the responsibilities of DGDE. It also ensures implementation of Cantonments Act 2006, Policies, Rules & Regulations and Executive instructions.
DGDE has under its jurisdiction six Principal Directorates namely, Principal Directors, Central, Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-western and Western Command. Under the Principal Directorates there are 37 Defence Estates Offices and 4 ADEO Circles for management of defence lands in the country.
There are 62 Cantonment Boards. These are local bodies responsible for providing civic administration and implementing the Central Govt schemes of social welfare, public health, hygiene, safety, water supply, sanitation, urban renewal and education.
Vision
To manage defence land effectively and efficiently and provide an efficient, effective, transparent and honest civic and development oriented administration in Cantonments. To make the Indian Defence Estates Service an institution of Excellence.
Mission
Land being a scarce and precious national resource and Cantonments becoming part of urban agglomeration, Defence Estates Department would strive to achieve the following:
•Transform Cantonments into model local bodies for improving quality of life of its residents through:
1.People friendly administration
2.Effective delivery systems
3.Transparent and result-oriented governance
4.Zero tolerance to corruption and mal-practices
5.Making adequate provisions for health and education services including vocational training
6.Caring for senior citizens and the disadvantaged
•Protect environment and heritage
•Make optimum utilization of land resources
•Protection and maintenance of defence lands and land records
•Manage defence land effectively and provide help to stake-holders in land management
•Prompt problem resolution
•Be effective advisers to Government
•Leverage technology including e-governance in all aspects of administration and land management
DGDE
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Greedy Generals Subvert Military Land Titles
Generals Vij and Deepak are they the perpetuators of this Puzzle?
Puzzling land title system behind Adarsh scam: Jaipal Reddy
New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI)
Against the backdrop of Adarsh scam, the Union government today blamed the complex land title system for increasing number of such cases and favoured urgent reforms in the sector to make it transparent and effective.
"The recent scandal relating to Adarsh housing society is a classic example. Nobody knows to whom the land belongs," Union Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy said here at a seminar on Guaranteed Land and Property Certification system.
He said, "Can there be a more sorry example of land titling. I am not talking of misuse by the people belonging to every important walks of life -- politicians, defence forces, bureaucrats...I am not referring to the scandal part of the thing. Today nobody knows to whom the property belongs."
The seminar was organised to discuss ways for introducing property certification system in the country. He said the system is being exploited by people like Haji Mastan (land mafia) and there is a nexus between politicians and officials.
"Thanks to the problem of urban land titling, we have Haji Mastans (land mafia) in every towns. Most of the politicians, policemen, officials... are hand in glove when it comes to urban land," Reddy said, adding, "In the last ten years, mining land and urban land have become best source of money making. It is difficult to find a non-disputed land."
He said, "Land titling is a ticklish question not only in urban area, but also in rural areas. Even in pre-Independent India it took decades to settle the land suit and that situation remains (till today)." Since urbanisation is growing apace it is difficult to distinguish rural and urban land, he said.
Referring Nandigram, the minister said there is need for a comprehensive law for guaranteed land titles. "We saw the problem in Nandigram where land owners were in Kolkata and somebody else was the tenant. Today no body knows to whom the property belongs. In my view, land titles pose most legal puzzle to our system."
Hoping that there will be a way forward, he said, "The subject is with the state government and not with the Centre. Let us find a solution. Let us take a few small steps." The Centre has already set up a working group and is developing a model land title for the states. The model will be provided to the state so that they can adopt a modern, effective and transparent land title certification system, Urban Development Secretary Navin Kumar said.
Puzzling land title system behind Adarsh scam- Deccan Herald Report
Tailpiece
Court-martialled officer not to get post-retirement benefits
Army sacks guilty General in Sukhna scam
New Delhi/Guwahati, Dec 3, DHNS:
Former military secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash was on Saturday dismissed from service after he was found guilty on three counts in a land scam at the Sukhna military station in West Bengal in 2008.
Sixty-one-year-old Prakash is the third Lt Gen rank officer to be court-martialled and the second to be sacked.
As Prakash has already retired from service on January 31, 2010, as per the Army Act, the dismissal means he will not get any post-retirement benefits like pension, medical facility and provident fund or be able to retain the rank and status of Lt General. He also automatically stands stripped off all his medals.
The order by the military court will be sent for confirmation to the eastern army commander, the convening authority of the General Court Martial in the case.
The order has to be signed by the Army chief to come into effect and Lt Gen Prakash can appeal against it in the civilian higher judiciary
Sukhna Scamster dismissed
Puzzling land title system behind Adarsh scam: Jaipal Reddy
New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI)
Against the backdrop of Adarsh scam, the Union government today blamed the complex land title system for increasing number of such cases and favoured urgent reforms in the sector to make it transparent and effective.
"The recent scandal relating to Adarsh housing society is a classic example. Nobody knows to whom the land belongs," Union Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy said here at a seminar on Guaranteed Land and Property Certification system.
He said, "Can there be a more sorry example of land titling. I am not talking of misuse by the people belonging to every important walks of life -- politicians, defence forces, bureaucrats...I am not referring to the scandal part of the thing. Today nobody knows to whom the property belongs."
The seminar was organised to discuss ways for introducing property certification system in the country. He said the system is being exploited by people like Haji Mastan (land mafia) and there is a nexus between politicians and officials.
"Thanks to the problem of urban land titling, we have Haji Mastans (land mafia) in every towns. Most of the politicians, policemen, officials... are hand in glove when it comes to urban land," Reddy said, adding, "In the last ten years, mining land and urban land have become best source of money making. It is difficult to find a non-disputed land."
He said, "Land titling is a ticklish question not only in urban area, but also in rural areas. Even in pre-Independent India it took decades to settle the land suit and that situation remains (till today)." Since urbanisation is growing apace it is difficult to distinguish rural and urban land, he said.
Referring Nandigram, the minister said there is need for a comprehensive law for guaranteed land titles. "We saw the problem in Nandigram where land owners were in Kolkata and somebody else was the tenant. Today no body knows to whom the property belongs. In my view, land titles pose most legal puzzle to our system."
Hoping that there will be a way forward, he said, "The subject is with the state government and not with the Centre. Let us find a solution. Let us take a few small steps." The Centre has already set up a working group and is developing a model land title for the states. The model will be provided to the state so that they can adopt a modern, effective and transparent land title certification system, Urban Development Secretary Navin Kumar said.
Puzzling land title system behind Adarsh scam- Deccan Herald Report
Tailpiece
Court-martialled officer not to get post-retirement benefits
Army sacks guilty General in Sukhna scam
New Delhi/Guwahati, Dec 3, DHNS:
Former military secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash was on Saturday dismissed from service after he was found guilty on three counts in a land scam at the Sukhna military station in West Bengal in 2008.
Sixty-one-year-old Prakash is the third Lt Gen rank officer to be court-martialled and the second to be sacked.
As Prakash has already retired from service on January 31, 2010, as per the Army Act, the dismissal means he will not get any post-retirement benefits like pension, medical facility and provident fund or be able to retain the rank and status of Lt General. He also automatically stands stripped off all his medals.
The order by the military court will be sent for confirmation to the eastern army commander, the convening authority of the General Court Martial in the case.
The order has to be signed by the Army chief to come into effect and Lt Gen Prakash can appeal against it in the civilian higher judiciary
Sukhna Scamster dismissed
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
IESM: Defence Personnel have a 'Right to Vote'
Registration of Defence Personnel as voters at the place of postings- ordinarily place of residence- being denied illegally.
Dear Friends,
Jai Hind.
Unless the Armed Forces become a powerful vote bank for all type of elections in the country, these politicians are not going to care for us.
Therefore, at all military stations, we need to make an all out effort to register our serving men and families as voters.
Please try and convey the contents of the email below to the Formation HQs and Units, in and around your place of living.
Most of us have our junior colleagues holding important posts in many Military stations. Let us call them on phones and make them aware of the provisions and ensure that all serving personnel get registered at the place of posting. Ring them frequently till you get confirmation that needful has been done.
Each one of us can take very active and very useful part in this activity.
TO FIGHT AGAINST INJUSTICE IS TO WORSHIP GOD
LET US ALL DO IT IN A BIG WAY.
WILL YOU PLEASE?
Vande Matram
In service of Indian Military Veterans
Chander Kamboj.
Dear Members of Parliament
1. Right to Vote is a basic right in a democracy. This basic right to vote is being hindered and denied to the soldiers. All Indians above 18 years of age which also include Armed Forces Personnel have equal constitutional right to be registered in the Electoral Rolls as Ordinary Residents. However, suitable mechanism and provisions to register Armed Forces Personnel as voters at the place of their postings have not been put in place even after 63 years of Independence.
2. There are over 60 large cantonments and over 250 medium and small military stations in the country. These cantonments and military stations are part of various constituencies of democratic elections in the country. It is therefore, legally and constitutionally correct to confer the rights to the soldiers to be registered as voters at the place of postings as Ordinary Residences of that place. The provisions of postal ballot or Proxy Voting are the other options which are allowed to the soldiers. 14 Assam Rifles (State Armed Police) deployed in Naga Land exercised franchise at their place of posting. It was challenged by the Candidate who lost election. Supreme Court AIR 1971 SC 2123 ruled “The Statutory fiction is intended to confer the right to be registered as elector at their home town or village but the fiction cannot take away right of persons possessing service qualification, to get themselves registered at a constituency in which they are ordinarily residing though such place happens to be their place of service”. This important ruling of the Supreme Court has not been implemented in letter and spirit in the country as far the Defence Personnel are concerned.
Dear Members of Parliament
1. Right to Vote is a basic right in a democracy. This basic right to vote is being hindered and denied to the soldiers. All Indians above 18 years of age which also include Armed Forces Personnel have equal constitutional right to be registered in the Electoral Rolls as Ordinary Residents. However, suitable mechanism and provisions to register Armed Forces Personnel as voters at the place of their postings have not been put in place even after 63 years of Independence.
2. There are over 60 large cantonments and over 250 medium and small military stations in the country. These cantonments and military stations are part of various constituencies of democratic elections in the country. It is therefore, legally and constitutionally correct to confer the rights to the soldiers to be registered as voters at the place of postings as Ordinary Residences of that place. The provisions of postal ballot or Proxy Voting are the other options which are allowed to the soldiers. 14 Assam Rifles (State Armed Police) deployed in Naga Land exercised franchise at their place of posting. It was challenged by the Candidate who lost election. Supreme Court AIR 1971 SC 2123 ruled “The Statutory fiction is intended to confer the right to be registered as elector at their home town or village but the fiction cannot take away right of persons possessing service qualification, to get themselves registered at a constituency in which they are ordinarily residing though such place happens to be their place of service”. This important ruling of the Supreme Court has not been implemented in letter and spirit in the country as far the Defence Personnel are concerned.
3. A Letter written to the Prime Minister by one of our Defence Veteran Organisation “All India Veterans Core Group NGO" is enclosed. As members Parliament, cutting across the Party Line, we the Defence Veterans request you to take up the issue with the Prime Minister and also discuss in the Parliament to get this important right of soldiers conferred on them and provisions put in place for the registration of Defence Personnel as voters at the place of posting.
With Regards,
Jai Hind
Yours Sincerely,
Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, SM
Vice Chairman Indian ESM Movement
Dear Friends,
Jai Hind.
Unless the Armed Forces become a powerful vote bank for all type of elections in the country, these politicians are not going to care for us.
Therefore, at all military stations, we need to make an all out effort to register our serving men and families as voters.
Please try and convey the contents of the email below to the Formation HQs and Units, in and around your place of living.
Most of us have our junior colleagues holding important posts in many Military stations. Let us call them on phones and make them aware of the provisions and ensure that all serving personnel get registered at the place of posting. Ring them frequently till you get confirmation that needful has been done.
Each one of us can take very active and very useful part in this activity.
TO FIGHT AGAINST INJUSTICE IS TO WORSHIP GOD
LET US ALL DO IT IN A BIG WAY.
WILL YOU PLEASE?
Vande Matram
In service of Indian Military Veterans
Chander Kamboj.
Dear Members of Parliament
1. Right to Vote is a basic right in a democracy. This basic right to vote is being hindered and denied to the soldiers. All Indians above 18 years of age which also include Armed Forces Personnel have equal constitutional right to be registered in the Electoral Rolls as Ordinary Residents. However, suitable mechanism and provisions to register Armed Forces Personnel as voters at the place of their postings have not been put in place even after 63 years of Independence.
2. There are over 60 large cantonments and over 250 medium and small military stations in the country. These cantonments and military stations are part of various constituencies of democratic elections in the country. It is therefore, legally and constitutionally correct to confer the rights to the soldiers to be registered as voters at the place of postings as Ordinary Residences of that place. The provisions of postal ballot or Proxy Voting are the other options which are allowed to the soldiers. 14 Assam Rifles (State Armed Police) deployed in Naga Land exercised franchise at their place of posting. It was challenged by the Candidate who lost election. Supreme Court AIR 1971 SC 2123 ruled “The Statutory fiction is intended to confer the right to be registered as elector at their home town or village but the fiction cannot take away right of persons possessing service qualification, to get themselves registered at a constituency in which they are ordinarily residing though such place happens to be their place of service”. This important ruling of the Supreme Court has not been implemented in letter and spirit in the country as far the Defence Personnel are concerned.
Dear Members of Parliament
1. Right to Vote is a basic right in a democracy. This basic right to vote is being hindered and denied to the soldiers. All Indians above 18 years of age which also include Armed Forces Personnel have equal constitutional right to be registered in the Electoral Rolls as Ordinary Residents. However, suitable mechanism and provisions to register Armed Forces Personnel as voters at the place of their postings have not been put in place even after 63 years of Independence.
2. There are over 60 large cantonments and over 250 medium and small military stations in the country. These cantonments and military stations are part of various constituencies of democratic elections in the country. It is therefore, legally and constitutionally correct to confer the rights to the soldiers to be registered as voters at the place of postings as Ordinary Residences of that place. The provisions of postal ballot or Proxy Voting are the other options which are allowed to the soldiers. 14 Assam Rifles (State Armed Police) deployed in Naga Land exercised franchise at their place of posting. It was challenged by the Candidate who lost election. Supreme Court AIR 1971 SC 2123 ruled “The Statutory fiction is intended to confer the right to be registered as elector at their home town or village but the fiction cannot take away right of persons possessing service qualification, to get themselves registered at a constituency in which they are ordinarily residing though such place happens to be their place of service”. This important ruling of the Supreme Court has not been implemented in letter and spirit in the country as far the Defence Personnel are concerned.
3. A Letter written to the Prime Minister by one of our Defence Veteran Organisation “All India Veterans Core Group NGO" is enclosed. As members Parliament, cutting across the Party Line, we the Defence Veterans request you to take up the issue with the Prime Minister and also discuss in the Parliament to get this important right of soldiers conferred on them and provisions put in place for the registration of Defence Personnel as voters at the place of posting.
With Regards,
Jai Hind
Yours Sincerely,
Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, SM
Vice Chairman Indian ESM Movement
Friday, April 9, 2010
19 year old girl raped by two jawans, held
Press Trust Of India
Pune, April 09, 2010
Two Army jawans were on Friday arrested for allegedly raping a 19-year-old girl in Sangvi area near in Pune, police said.
The two jawans allegedly raped the girl on Wednesday night at Swaraj garden after beating up her lover.
The couple had gone for a ride on a motorcycle but had to dismount when they ran out of petrol. The two accused then scared away the youth and took the girl to the adjacent open ground where they allegedly committed the crime, they said.
The girl later filed a complaint with the police, which arrested the duo identified as Rajneesh Kumar Sureshchandra (from Uttar Pradesh) and Suminder Singh Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan) this morning.
The incident comes days after a married woman was gangraped in the city.
19 year old girl raped by two jawans, held
Comment
This is making National News in the Media and TV. In this shocking incident, a 19 year old girl raped by two jawans of Rajputana Rifles in Pune as the girl was forced by the duo to their camp and committed misdeed. The medical report of raped still awaited in the case. It is most likely the duo were under the influence of alcohol.
The Battalion Commander who is a full Colonel is squarely to blame for the this gruesome rape (if committed) of a young girl near the Military Camp and for the indiscipline of his troops! The Battalion Commander needs to come out in the open and apologise in Public rather than trying to cover/ shield the misdeed of the culprits. What a shame and disgrace!
Pune, April 09, 2010
Two Army jawans were on Friday arrested for allegedly raping a 19-year-old girl in Sangvi area near in Pune, police said.
The two jawans allegedly raped the girl on Wednesday night at Swaraj garden after beating up her lover.
The couple had gone for a ride on a motorcycle but had to dismount when they ran out of petrol. The two accused then scared away the youth and took the girl to the adjacent open ground where they allegedly committed the crime, they said.
The girl later filed a complaint with the police, which arrested the duo identified as Rajneesh Kumar Sureshchandra (from Uttar Pradesh) and Suminder Singh Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan) this morning.
The incident comes days after a married woman was gangraped in the city.
19 year old girl raped by two jawans, held
Comment
This is making National News in the Media and TV. In this shocking incident, a 19 year old girl raped by two jawans of Rajputana Rifles in Pune as the girl was forced by the duo to their camp and committed misdeed. The medical report of raped still awaited in the case. It is most likely the duo were under the influence of alcohol.
The Battalion Commander who is a full Colonel is squarely to blame for the this gruesome rape (if committed) of a young girl near the Military Camp and for the indiscipline of his troops! The Battalion Commander needs to come out in the open and apologise in Public rather than trying to cover/ shield the misdeed of the culprits. What a shame and disgrace!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Nationwide rampant encroachment of Defence Lands
LOK SABHA
Some Defence land under the management of various authorities is under encroachment or illegal occupation. The state-wise details are as follows:
click image to read data
Any encroachment of Defence lands is liable for removal and also for payment of damage charges as per the law. Hence loss caused, if any, is recoverable. The action for eviction of the encroached lands is taken under the provisions of the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971 and Cantonments Act, 2006.
This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Somen Mitra in Lok Sabha on 30 Nov 2009. PK / RAJ
Encroachment of Defence Lands
Comment:
The AHQ need to vigorously pursue encroachment cases diligently. Area Commanders are responsible for securing and upkeep of Defence Lands. Sadly they close their eyes when they get paltry personal favours from the encroachers, conmen, hoodlums and Political Criminals. Sukhna Land scam is only the tip of the iceberg. The Defence Minister instead of preaching in the Lok Sabha need to fight the Land Grabbers and MOD bureaucrats on the ground and not on paper!
Some Defence land under the management of various authorities is under encroachment or illegal occupation. The state-wise details are as follows:
Any encroachment of Defence lands is liable for removal and also for payment of damage charges as per the law. Hence loss caused, if any, is recoverable. The action for eviction of the encroached lands is taken under the provisions of the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971 and Cantonments Act, 2006.
This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Somen Mitra in Lok Sabha on 30 Nov 2009. PK / RAJ
Encroachment of Defence Lands
Comment:
The AHQ need to vigorously pursue encroachment cases diligently. Area Commanders are responsible for securing and upkeep of Defence Lands. Sadly they close their eyes when they get paltry personal favours from the encroachers, conmen, hoodlums and Political Criminals. Sukhna Land scam is only the tip of the iceberg. The Defence Minister instead of preaching in the Lok Sabha need to fight the Land Grabbers and MOD bureaucrats on the ground and not on paper!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Misuse of Defence Lands by Commercial agents thwarted by the High Court
Thursday, Mar 25, 2010: The Hindu
Special Correspondent: Single judge's order to permit conversion set aside
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has allowed appeals by the Cantonment Board, St. Thomas Mount-cum-Pallavaram, and the Defence Ministry challenging a single Judge's order directing the authorities to permit conversion of a piece of land, leased by the Defence Ministry to a person, from residential to commercial purpose.
U. Venkatesh was the lessee of 19,200 sq.ft. of land at St. Thomas Mount-cum-Pallavaram Cantonment and the lease granted was only for residential use and not commercial purpose. The conversion was not granted by the Defence Ministry. He filed petitions praying for permission to use the leasehold right for commercial purpose for 90 years by fixing and collecting annual rent and premium of the year 1997 and a direction to the Executive Officer, Cantonment Office, to sanction the building plan in his favour. He also challenged the rejection of his request for conversion of land use. By a common order the single Judge allowed the petitions.
As against the orders, the present appeals were filed. The appellants said the request for change of land use having been rejected and without obtaining the Defence Ministry's permission, approval of the building plan was sought for, which was also returned. The petitioner ought not to have commenced construction on the land for commercial purpose.
M. Ravindran, Additional Solicitor-General, submitted that the petitioner was a lessee of the land, owned by the Defence Ministry, and he was bound by the lease deed which contained a clause to use the land only for residential and not for commercial purpose.
Allowing the appeals and setting aside the single Judge's order, a Division Bench comprising Justices Elipe Dharma Rao and N. Paul Vasanthakumar said the petitioner's conduct in approaching the court and obtaining an interim order without disclosing the non-grant of permission for using the land for commercial purpose and completing the building construction was illegal. The petitioner was bound by the lease agreement.
The Bench said the Supreme Court in a decision had held that buildings constructed unauthorisedly were bound to be demolished. In this case, the petitioner admittedly constructed the building without the Defence Ministry's permission regarding change of land use and also without obtaining building plan approval from the Estate Officer.
Land use conversion case: High Court allows Defence Ministry's appeals
Related article:
Gymkhana Club which is governed by civilians (though land and premises belong to the Military) now need to get licences to operate eateries within the club. The hygiene parameters are bound to improve in the clubs devoid of flies, mosquitoes, bird droppings and foul smell in the dining areas. The Military need to get back the defence lands leased to the Gymkhana Club. The lease has been renewed by corrupt and dubious means and premises used for commercial gains by the Gymkhana Governing Body whose main aim is to spin money. The above case illustrates how the lease can be revoked through court order. The Area Commander who is the Patron of Gymkhana Club should take the initiative of preserving the defence lands in his custody or else it will graduate to land Scam of Sukhna proportions.
Licences mandatory for club restaurants
Special Correspondent: Single judge's order to permit conversion set aside
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has allowed appeals by the Cantonment Board, St. Thomas Mount-cum-Pallavaram, and the Defence Ministry challenging a single Judge's order directing the authorities to permit conversion of a piece of land, leased by the Defence Ministry to a person, from residential to commercial purpose.
U. Venkatesh was the lessee of 19,200 sq.ft. of land at St. Thomas Mount-cum-Pallavaram Cantonment and the lease granted was only for residential use and not commercial purpose. The conversion was not granted by the Defence Ministry. He filed petitions praying for permission to use the leasehold right for commercial purpose for 90 years by fixing and collecting annual rent and premium of the year 1997 and a direction to the Executive Officer, Cantonment Office, to sanction the building plan in his favour. He also challenged the rejection of his request for conversion of land use. By a common order the single Judge allowed the petitions.
As against the orders, the present appeals were filed. The appellants said the request for change of land use having been rejected and without obtaining the Defence Ministry's permission, approval of the building plan was sought for, which was also returned. The petitioner ought not to have commenced construction on the land for commercial purpose.
M. Ravindran, Additional Solicitor-General, submitted that the petitioner was a lessee of the land, owned by the Defence Ministry, and he was bound by the lease deed which contained a clause to use the land only for residential and not for commercial purpose.
Allowing the appeals and setting aside the single Judge's order, a Division Bench comprising Justices Elipe Dharma Rao and N. Paul Vasanthakumar said the petitioner's conduct in approaching the court and obtaining an interim order without disclosing the non-grant of permission for using the land for commercial purpose and completing the building construction was illegal. The petitioner was bound by the lease agreement.
The Bench said the Supreme Court in a decision had held that buildings constructed unauthorisedly were bound to be demolished. In this case, the petitioner admittedly constructed the building without the Defence Ministry's permission regarding change of land use and also without obtaining building plan approval from the Estate Officer.
Land use conversion case: High Court allows Defence Ministry's appeals
Related article:
Gymkhana Club which is governed by civilians (though land and premises belong to the Military) now need to get licences to operate eateries within the club. The hygiene parameters are bound to improve in the clubs devoid of flies, mosquitoes, bird droppings and foul smell in the dining areas. The Military need to get back the defence lands leased to the Gymkhana Club. The lease has been renewed by corrupt and dubious means and premises used for commercial gains by the Gymkhana Governing Body whose main aim is to spin money. The above case illustrates how the lease can be revoked through court order. The Area Commander who is the Patron of Gymkhana Club should take the initiative of preserving the defence lands in his custody or else it will graduate to land Scam of Sukhna proportions.
Licences mandatory for club restaurants
Bangalore Army CSD Canteen engulfed in flames
Fire in Bangalore’s Military Canteen; no casualties
by nishal lama 23. March 2010
A massive fire engulfed the second floor of the Army canteen on M.G. Road at Trinity Circle in Bangalore today afternoon. Cause of the fire is yet to confirmed, but there were rumors that the presence of liquor bottles aggravated the fire that broke at 4:10 pm today afternoon. Authorities, however, negate the rumor. Speaking about the incident, Police Commissioner Shankar Bidari said, “The cause of the fire will be found only after a thorough examination of the place. For now, we will have to lodge a complain of an accidental fire at the Ulsoor Police Station. He added, “There were no liquor bottles found, so it wasn’t the liquor that aggravated the situation.”
The blaze occurred at the second floor of the CSD building, which was believed to have been packed with a lot of inflammatory objects. “There were a lot of inflammable objects, like plastics and other paper-made objects, in the room, which is why there was major loss of property,” said Bidari. He adds: “There are no casualties and no injured persons. All are safe, and the fire is well under control now.”
24 fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the fire, and the authorities now prefer to wait till they start off with their examination to know the cause of the fire. “We will have to wait till as time the accurate cause is been found out. Once we find the cause, we can then take the necessary action, but, we will have to wait till the examination gets over for that,” said Bidari. He added, “All senior fire officials were here and things were taken under control very quickly.”
Fire in Bangalore’s Military Canteen; no casualties
Related story:
Some furniture, including over 100 chairs, in the building were damaged, according to R. Natraj, director, Fire and Rescue Services.
Fire in defence godown: Fort St George, Chennai
Sunday, February 28, 2010
High Court to MoD: Crack down on encroachment in Cantonments
LUCKNOW: In a significant judgment, the Allahabad high court has directed the secretary, ministry of defence, to instruct all the command heads of Indian military to map all defence lands and estates and ensure zero unauthorised occupancy or encroachment thereon.
The judgment may have far-reaching consequences as it could lead to prompt eviction of tens of thousands of civilians who have been occupying the military land in the absence of any clear-cut ruling on the real ownership of the land.
Justice Rakesh Sharma issued the directives in his judgment on a petition filed by Vishnu Narain Garg against the Government of India (GoI) over possession of a 62 bigha land in Sachendi village of Kanpur City district. The case pertained to the dispute over ownership of the land that was acquired to serve as Military Camping Ground (padaao) after the uprising of 1857 when the Britishers strengthened their army establishments particularly in cities which witnessed action during the First War of Independence.
Emphasising on the need of land for the military, the bench stated that the army was already short of land required for "military purposes" for its day to day affairs and operations including regular training. Highlighting the role of the Indian Army, the bench noted that it was essential that the military was provided with the required elements including land to maintain its training levels and guard our nation.
After having reasoned out the importance and necessity of the defence land, the court expressed concern over the encroachment of defence land by land mafia and land-grabbers around the defence estates in different districts of Uttar Pradesh and beyond. "It has been brought to the notice of the court that entertainment centres and commercial establishments run by private parties are being brought up uninterruptedly on army land," the judgment stated.
The court also observed that the military commanders heading the commands owe it to the nation to ensure that the land earmarked for military purposes does not go into unauthorised hands.
Read the full article
High Court to MoD: Crack down on encroachment in Cantonments
The judgment may have far-reaching consequences as it could lead to prompt eviction of tens of thousands of civilians who have been occupying the military land in the absence of any clear-cut ruling on the real ownership of the land.
Justice Rakesh Sharma issued the directives in his judgment on a petition filed by Vishnu Narain Garg against the Government of India (GoI) over possession of a 62 bigha land in Sachendi village of Kanpur City district. The case pertained to the dispute over ownership of the land that was acquired to serve as Military Camping Ground (padaao) after the uprising of 1857 when the Britishers strengthened their army establishments particularly in cities which witnessed action during the First War of Independence.
Emphasising on the need of land for the military, the bench stated that the army was already short of land required for "military purposes" for its day to day affairs and operations including regular training. Highlighting the role of the Indian Army, the bench noted that it was essential that the military was provided with the required elements including land to maintain its training levels and guard our nation.
After having reasoned out the importance and necessity of the defence land, the court expressed concern over the encroachment of defence land by land mafia and land-grabbers around the defence estates in different districts of Uttar Pradesh and beyond. "It has been brought to the notice of the court that entertainment centres and commercial establishments run by private parties are being brought up uninterruptedly on army land," the judgment stated.
The court also observed that the military commanders heading the commands owe it to the nation to ensure that the land earmarked for military purposes does not go into unauthorised hands.
Read the full article
High Court to MoD: Crack down on encroachment in Cantonments
Monday, December 28, 2009
Antony discusses scam report with Army chief
PTI First Published: 25 Dec 2009 11:47:24 AM IST
NEW DELHI: With four Generals coming under cloud over alleged fraud in the sale of a civilian land near Darjeeling, Defence Minister A K Antony summoned Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor for a meeting in which they reportedly discussed the contents of the probe on the issue.
Antony, on his return from Hyderabad in the afternoon, called for a meeting with Kapoor and the two were closeted for about 40 minutes, Defence Ministry officials said this evening.
"It was a closed door, one-on-one meeting," officials said, denying knowledge of the meeting's agenda.
Army military secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash, Deputy Chief of Army Staff-designate Lt Gen P K Rath, 11 Corps Commander Lt Gen Ramesh Halgalli and Major General P C Sen were reportedly found culpable for issuing a No-Objection Certificate to a private institution, which falsely claimed to set up an affiliate of the famed Ajmer-based Mayo College, adjacent to Sukhna military station.
The Court of Inquiry into the fraud, which was completed a fortnight ago, had submitted its report, on the basis of which Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen V K Singh reportedly made recommendations to Army Chief to initiate strict action against these senior officers, who had a role in the NOC episode.
Antony discusses scam report with Army chief
Illegal encroachment of defence lands
What has MoD done to evict illegal encroachment of defence lands by unscrupulous elements having local political criminal connections? The DEO's are silent spectators to illegal occupation of defence lands in all the Military Cantonments.
NEW DELHI: With four Generals coming under cloud over alleged fraud in the sale of a civilian land near Darjeeling, Defence Minister A K Antony summoned Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor for a meeting in which they reportedly discussed the contents of the probe on the issue.
Antony, on his return from Hyderabad in the afternoon, called for a meeting with Kapoor and the two were closeted for about 40 minutes, Defence Ministry officials said this evening.
"It was a closed door, one-on-one meeting," officials said, denying knowledge of the meeting's agenda.
Army military secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash, Deputy Chief of Army Staff-designate Lt Gen P K Rath, 11 Corps Commander Lt Gen Ramesh Halgalli and Major General P C Sen were reportedly found culpable for issuing a No-Objection Certificate to a private institution, which falsely claimed to set up an affiliate of the famed Ajmer-based Mayo College, adjacent to Sukhna military station.
The Court of Inquiry into the fraud, which was completed a fortnight ago, had submitted its report, on the basis of which Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen V K Singh reportedly made recommendations to Army Chief to initiate strict action against these senior officers, who had a role in the NOC episode.
Antony discusses scam report with Army chief
Illegal encroachment of defence lands
What has MoD done to evict illegal encroachment of defence lands by unscrupulous elements having local political criminal connections? The DEO's are silent spectators to illegal occupation of defence lands in all the Military Cantonments.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Indian Military: Wasteful Effort
Defence Estate Department has a very large inventory of land having no use for the military. Military possesses huge land and related infrastructure unwanted or most sparingly used - that cost a great deal in terms of manpower and expenditure to maintain. Airfields uneconomical are owned and maintained by the Air Force. The military possesses large useless inventory that has been criticised by CAG. Weapon systems beyond useful life are maintained at extraordinary effort and cost since they are not replaced in time. We operate at least four different aircraft and use five different engines that had become obsolete and do not fly anywhere else in the world! Upgradation of the Air Force fleet comes at the near end of the life of a weapon system when there is no replacement in sight - to give it a fresh life. This is a bad strategy. The West talks about mid-life upgrades and never an upgrade at the end of life! Our MIG-21 upgrade, the BISON project has still not been completed. It is now a race to complete the upgrade before the technical life gets over! There is plenty of scope to improve interoperability between the three services. Many systems used by the three services have many commonalities. Currently, the logistics systems followed by the services are not linked. A spare which one service needs may be in surplus with another but there is no way to know it. Facilities are duplicated or even triplicated without being aware. Besides improving efficiency, costs and manning could be significantly reduced through integration among the Services.
Air Chief Marshal (Retd) S Krishnaswamy, PVSM, AVSM, VM & Bar,
Fellow Ae Sl is Member, National Security Advisory Board.
(Vol 22.2 September 16th, 2007.)
Extracted: IDR: Shaping of the Indian Military
Comment: Well articulated about the Defence Estate Department. This is one arm next only to MES in the scale and scope of corruption in the Armed Forces. Literally a Mafia (no guns of course) organisation dealing with politicians, local thugs, money laundering and palming off defence lands stealthily in connivance with MOD bureaucrats. Huge unwanted lands of the Military need to be assessed on ground and properly accounted for and utilised for Nation Building and not given away to real estate sharks for a song.
Air Chief Marshal (Retd) S Krishnaswamy, PVSM, AVSM, VM & Bar,
Fellow Ae Sl is Member, National Security Advisory Board.
(Vol 22.2 September 16th, 2007.)
Extracted: IDR: Shaping of the Indian Military
Comment: Well articulated about the Defence Estate Department. This is one arm next only to MES in the scale and scope of corruption in the Armed Forces. Literally a Mafia (no guns of course) organisation dealing with politicians, local thugs, money laundering and palming off defence lands stealthily in connivance with MOD bureaucrats. Huge unwanted lands of the Military need to be assessed on ground and properly accounted for and utilised for Nation Building and not given away to real estate sharks for a song.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Raksha Mantralya (MOD) Broad Functions
Raksha Vibhag (Deparment of Defence)
01. Defence of India and every part thereof including preparation for defence and all such acts as may be conducive in time of war to its prosecution and after its termination to effective demobilisation.
02. The Armed Forces of the Union, namely, Army, Navy and Air Force.
03. Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence comprising of Army Headquarters, Naval Headquarters, Air Headquarters and Defence Staff Headquarters.
04. The Reserves of the Army, Navy and Air Force.
05. The Territorial Army.
06. The National Cadet Corps.
07. Works relating to Army, Navy and Air Force.
08. Remounts, Veterinary and Farms Organisation.
09. Canteen Stores Department (India).
10. Civilian Services paid from Defence Estimates.
11. Hydrographic surveys and preparation of navigational charts.
12. Formation of Cantonments, delimitation/excision of Cantonment areas, local self-government in such areas, the constitution and powers within such areas of Contonment Boards and authorities and the regulation of house accommodation (including the control of rents) in such areas.
13. Acquisition, requisitioning, custody and relinquishment of land and property for defence purposes. Eviction of unauthorised occupants from defence land and property.
14. **
15. Defence Accounts Department.
16. Purchase of food stuffs for military requirements and their disposal excluding those entrusted to Department of Food and Public Distribution.
17. All matters relating to Coast Guard Organisation, including- surveillance of maritime zones against oil spills; combating oil spills in various maritime zones, except in the waters of ports and within 500 metres of off-shore exploration and production platforms, coastal refineries and associated facilities such as Single Buoy Mooring (SBM), Crude Oil Terminal (COT) and pipelines; Central Coordinating Agency for Combating of Oil Pollution in the coastal and marine environment of various maritime zones; implementation of National Contingency Plan for oil spill disaster; and undertaking oil spill prevention and control, inspection of ships and offshore platforms in the country, except within the limits of ports as empowered by the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 (44 of 1958).
18. Matters relating to diving and related activities in the country.
19. Procurement exclusive to the Defence services.
Poorva Sennani Kalyan Vibhag (Department of Ex- Servicemen)
01. Matters relating to Armed Forces Veterans (Ex-Servicemen) including pensioners.
02. Armed Forces Veterans (Ex-Servicemen) Contributory Health Scheme.
03. Matters relating to Directorate General of Resettlement and Kendriya Sainik Board.
04. Administration of- the Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 (Parts I and II); the Pension Regulations for the Air Force, 1961 (Parts I and II);the Navy (Pension) Regulations, 1964; and The Entitlement Rules to Casualty Pensionary Awards to the Armed Forces Personnel, 1982.
01. Defence of India and every part thereof including preparation for defence and all such acts as may be conducive in time of war to its prosecution and after its termination to effective demobilisation.
02. The Armed Forces of the Union, namely, Army, Navy and Air Force.
03. Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence comprising of Army Headquarters, Naval Headquarters, Air Headquarters and Defence Staff Headquarters.
04. The Reserves of the Army, Navy and Air Force.
05. The Territorial Army.
06. The National Cadet Corps.
07. Works relating to Army, Navy and Air Force.
08. Remounts, Veterinary and Farms Organisation.
09. Canteen Stores Department (India).
10. Civilian Services paid from Defence Estimates.
11. Hydrographic surveys and preparation of navigational charts.
12. Formation of Cantonments, delimitation/excision of Cantonment areas, local self-government in such areas, the constitution and powers within such areas of Contonment Boards and authorities and the regulation of house accommodation (including the control of rents) in such areas.
13. Acquisition, requisitioning, custody and relinquishment of land and property for defence purposes. Eviction of unauthorised occupants from defence land and property.
14. **
15. Defence Accounts Department.
16. Purchase of food stuffs for military requirements and their disposal excluding those entrusted to Department of Food and Public Distribution.
17. All matters relating to Coast Guard Organisation, including- surveillance of maritime zones against oil spills; combating oil spills in various maritime zones, except in the waters of ports and within 500 metres of off-shore exploration and production platforms, coastal refineries and associated facilities such as Single Buoy Mooring (SBM), Crude Oil Terminal (COT) and pipelines; Central Coordinating Agency for Combating of Oil Pollution in the coastal and marine environment of various maritime zones; implementation of National Contingency Plan for oil spill disaster; and undertaking oil spill prevention and control, inspection of ships and offshore platforms in the country, except within the limits of ports as empowered by the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 (44 of 1958).
18. Matters relating to diving and related activities in the country.
19. Procurement exclusive to the Defence services.
Poorva Sennani Kalyan Vibhag (Department of Ex- Servicemen)
01. Matters relating to Armed Forces Veterans (Ex-Servicemen) including pensioners.
02. Armed Forces Veterans (Ex-Servicemen) Contributory Health Scheme.
03. Matters relating to Directorate General of Resettlement and Kendriya Sainik Board.
04. Administration of- the Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 (Parts I and II); the Pension Regulations for the Air Force, 1961 (Parts I and II);the Navy (Pension) Regulations, 1964; and The Entitlement Rules to Casualty Pensionary Awards to the Armed Forces Personnel, 1982.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
