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Polity & Governance
Mahesh

02/08/24 11:09 AM IST

Karnataka MUDA scam

In News
  • The Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), one of the State’s first urban planning and development bodies established as City Improvement Trust Board (CITB) in 1904 during the rule of the Mysuru Maharajas, has come under intense public glare.
50:50 ration scheme
  • The 50:50 ratio scheme envisages allotment of 50% of developed land to the land loser.
  • While an acre of land comprises around 43,000 to 44,000 square feet, only about 23,000 square feet of developed land is available for residential sites as the remaining goes towards roads, parks, civic amenities (CA) site and other amenities.
  • Out of the 23,000 square feet of developed land for every acre, 50% or 11,500 square feet is allotted to the land loser and the remaining 11,500 is retained by the MUDA, according to officials familiar with the 50:50 ratio scheme.
  • If MUDA had developed a layout on one acre of land without completing the acquisition formalities, the land owner was entitled to 11,500 square feet of developed land, which for example translates into nine sites of 30x40 dimension plus another site measuring 700 square feet.
MUDA Scam
  • The 50:50 scheme, when approved, envisaged each case of allotment of sites under it to be brought before the MUDA board.
  • However, there have been allegations that the sites have been sanctioned to ineligible persons based on forged and bogus documents through middlemen in connivance with MUDA officials without the knowledge of the board.
  • The continued allotment of sites under the scheme even after the Congress government issued directions to MUDA, twice in 2023, to stop it has brought the role of the MUDA officials in the alleged irregularities under public glare and scrutiny.
  • Apart from allotting sites under 50:50 ratio scheme, MUDA had been allotting sites as an incentive to land losers who had already been compensated.
  • A land owner surrendering one acre of land to MUDA is entitled to one site as an incentive.
  • It has been alleged that the MUDA was misusing this provision as well to allot sites to ineligible persons.
  • The MUDA allotted 14 sites in Vijayangar III and IV Stage Layouts, measuring a total of 38,284 square feet under the 50:50 ratio scheme, in lieu of her land that was used for developing Devanur Layout.
Why Scheme for land Losers?
  • MUDA, which is expected to acquire land, develop residential layouts and allot sites to applicants at a reasonable price, had been facing a number of litigations for developing layouts in Mysuru city during the last few decades without completing the land acquisition formalities.
  • As MUDA does not have financial capability to compensate land losers, many had moved the courts.
  • In one case, the High Court directed MUDA in 2020 to return to the original owner more than two acres of land it had developed in Srirampura in Mysuru without completing the acquisition formalities.
  • Under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, Mr. Rajeev said MUDA would have to pay not only the market value of the entire acquired property in terms of square feet or acres, but also 100% solatium (compensation) with 12% interest since the day of the acquisition, which in many cases was decades ago.
  • Hence, the MUDA, at a meeting of its Board in September 2020, decided to approve the 50:50 ratio scheme for land losers to avoid the prospect of coughing up large sums of money as compensation.
Source- The Hindu

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