KOCHI: In a major order, the Ernakulam District Collector has issued a directive to reconvert a paddy field in about five acres of land in Kadavoor village at Paingottoor panchayat in Kothamangalam, after the owners grew mahogony, mangium, jackfruit trees etc on the plot violating the Kerala Paddyland and Wetland Conservation Act 2008.
This is the second such order by the Collector for the same piece of land. In 2010, the then Collector M Beena had issued an order to reconvert the land after the owners, Saji Varghese and wife Anumol, converted the land into a rubber plantation. In the order dated June 2, the Collector had asked the owners to re-convert the reclaimed plot of land into paddy field in 30 days under Section 13 of the Act.
RDO ordered to deduct expenses
The Revenue Divisional Officer, Muvattupuzha, has been directed to deduct the expenses from the owners if they failed to do so, the order said.“There was a clear violation of the Kerala Paddy Land and Wetland Conservation Act, 2008, when the Revenue Divisional Officer of Muvattupuzha visited the land as per a case filed in the Kerala High Court,” the order said.
After the 2010 order, it was found that the owners of the plot transferred the land into the name of Anumol’s father and again filled the reclaimed paddy land and planted mahagony, jackfruit, anjili etc along with other two neighbours, including an executive engineer.The 2010 order by Beena was the first case of reconverting filled land into paddyland in Kerala after the enactment of the Kerala Paddyland and Wetland Conservation Act 2008.