Maharashtra govt forms SITs to probe allotment of forest lands

These district-level SITs will be overseen by a review committee, chaired by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Forces). Other members of the committee include the Settlement Commissioner, Director of Land Records, and Chief Conservators of Forests. The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Conservation) will serve as the Member Secretary. This committee will periodically review the functioning of the SITs and is responsible for compiling their reports into a single document to be submitted by November 15.

The compiled report will then be presented to a state-level coordination committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary. This top-tier committee will include the Additional Chief Secretaries of Forests and Revenue, with the Chief Forest Conservator (Mantralaya) as its Member Secretary.

According to the Government Resolution (GR) issued by the Forest Department on September 5, the SITs will conduct on-site verification to gather data on forest lands managed by Revenue and other departments and investigate how and for what purposes they have been allotted.

The GR follows mounting allegations of a land scam in Navi Mumbai, reportedly worth thousands of crores of rupees. Shiv Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat has been accused of favouring a particular family by approving the illegal handover of 15 acres of prime land during his tenure as the chairman of the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) in the previous government. Welcoming the government’s move, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar said, “The committee will expose the truth and the minister should be sacked.”

In its May 15 order, the Supreme Court had directed the formation of SITs “for the purpose of examining as to whether any of the reserved Forest Land in the possession of the Revenue Department has been allotted to any private individuals/institutions for any purpose other than the forestry purpose.”

The court further stated, “The State Governments and the Union Territories are also directed to take steps to take back the possession of the land from the persons/institutions in possession of such lands and handover the same to the Forest Department. In case, it is found that taking back the possession of the land would not be in the larger public interest, the State Governments/Union Territories should recover the cost of the said land from the persons/institutions to whom they were allotted and use the said amount for the purpose of development of forests.”

The entire process is to be completed within one year, as per the Supreme Court’s directive.