Kerala   

Land purchase legal: Sarabhai Space Centre

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) has said that there was nothing illegal in its deal to buy 81.5 acres (about 33 hectares) of land in Merchiston Estate in Ponmudi in the district for setting up its Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology.

The VSSC made this assertion on Sunday in its reply to a notice issued to it by the Forest Department on Saturday, asking it to stop civil works in the estate since the land, enjoying the status of “reserved forests,” was vested with the Government under the Kerala Forests (Vesting and Management of Ecologically Fragile Lands) Ordinance, 2001.

In its reply, the VSSC said the land, forming part of the estate, was bought by it on July 20, 2007 from Southern Field Ventures Private Ltd., which owned the estate and had all the required documents in proof of its title rights over the land.

The VSSC noted that although the entire estate was notified as ecologically fragile land in 2001, the Act that replaced the ordinance in 2003 had excluded all lands that were used for the cultivation of long-duration crops, such as tea, coffee, rubber, cardamom, coconut, areca nut and cashew, from the definition of ecologically fragile lands.

Southern Field Ventures had approached the custodian of ecologically fragile lands to get the land de-notified under the new definition. The custodian, on the basis of an inspection report from a committee constituted under the rules framed earlier this year under the 2003 Act, passed an order on June 12, 2007, declaring only 24.4 hectares of the estate as ecologically fragile land, thus releasing the remaining area of the estate from the earlier takeover notification.

The Department of Space had received clearance from the legal advisers of the Union Department of Legal Affairs, after their scrutiny and perusal of all documents relating to the land. The VSSC noted that it made a submission to the Chief Minister on May 22, 2007 to expedite the proceedings of the custodian of ecologically fragile lands. The Chief Minister had marked this letter to the Forests Minister.

The VSSC wondered why objections, if any, were not communicated to it then. In the absence of any communication from the Forest Department and in the light of the subsequent order of the custodian on June 12, the VSSC took the decision to buy the land on July 20 after getting the final clearance of the Union Ministry of Law on July 9.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Land purchase legal: Sarabhai Space Centre
“Kerala not against Salem division”
Nothing illegal in land deal: VSSC
Documentary on MT
RTI gaining in popularity
school notes
Playtime
A handy directory of doctors
For a healthy tomorrow
Time for pleasantries
Heavy rush at Guruvayur temple
Rajya Raksha March
Online counselling for suicide prevention
Campus Notes
On the edge
Defaced compound walls

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu