Date:26/12/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/12/26/stories/2006122614280500.htm

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Karnataka - Bangalore

State Land Use Board to be revived

Nagesh Prabhu

This follows KIADB move to acquire farm land

10 lakh hectares of wasteland to be brought under economic use

Board to be strengthened for ensuring land resources management

Bandeppa Kashempur

BANGALORE: Following the Industries Department's move to acquire thousands of acres of farmland for industrial parks and special economic zones, the Agriculture Department has decided to revive the State Land Use Board to bring more land under cultivation.

Agriculture Minister Bandeppa Kashempur told The Hindu that "the Board is a powerful agency for land use but does not function owing to administrative bottlenecks."

A decision has been taken to revive the board following the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board's (KIADB) proposal to acquire over 25,000 acres of land (a majority of it farm land) in the next one year for setting up industrial townships across the State.

The Land Use Board had become non-operational owing to non-posting of officials. Staff headed by an officer of the level of Joint Director would be posted in a couple of months for effective functioning of the board, he said.

The department proposed to bring under economic use 10 lakh hectares of wasteland in the next one decade, specifically in Bijapur, Bagalkot, Raichur, Koppal, Hassan, Bellary and Gulbarga districts, Mr. Kashempur said.

Mr. Kashempur said the board would be further strengthened for ensuring land resources management, development and conservation.

Action plan

It would have technical and managerial staff to prepare annual action plans for training of extension personnel and coordinate departmental activities in implementation of the action plan for agricultural development.

The wasteland identified for bio-fuel plantations would also be transferred to the board, he said.

A few years ago, the board had prepared a 25-year perspective plan for development of barren land. But it remained only on paper as there was no staff to implement it.

It would be made to function as a regional resource centre for management of Production Management Information Systems at the State-level.

Panchayati Raj institutions would be made use for developing operational investment plans and promoting the desired land use on participatory micro-watershed basis, Mr. Kashempur said.

The board would also have the responsibility of tackling soil erosion that has been noted in 60 per cent of the area under crops. Wate-rlogging, salinity, and alkalinity were other major problems. Large areas of land were degraded in the project areas of the Tungabhadra, Upper Krishna Project and the Malaprabha-Ghataprabha project.

A planned programme for improving soil health would be taken up by covering 35,000 hectares per year, he said.

Watershed projects

Approximately, 129.70 lakh hectares of land (including 12.80 lakh hectares degraded forest area) could be brought under cultivation by construction of watershed projects.

As on March 2006, 39.20 lakh hectares of land were treated under various watershed projects. The department proposed to develop the balance area in phases in next 20 years, Mr. Kashempur said.