HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has faulted irrigation officials for proceeding with canal excavation works on ‘shikam patta’ lands without addressing compensation concerns of rightful landowners. Justice C V Bhaskar Reddy said the officials were ignorant of basic revenue laws and stated that even though land may fall under the FTL (full tank level), it does not automatically belong to the government.
“All FTL lands are not owned by the government. There are ‘shikam sarkari’ and ‘shikam patta’ lands. While ‘shikam sarkari’ lands are government property, ‘shikam patta’ lands are private lands with cultivation rights granted to landowners.
Such owners are entitled to compensation,” the judge observed. He remarked, “Officials are acting without even understanding the law. They must be taught the basics of revenue regulations.”
The remarks came during the hearing of a petition filed by Thandu Chandrayya and 10 others from Malkapet village in Konaraopet mandal, Rajanna Sircilla district.
The petitioners challenged the ongoing work under the Kaleshwaram project that aims to channel water into the Malkapet tank, fearing that their patta lands would be permanently submerged.
Despite submitting multiple representations to authorities, the farmers said no action had been taken. Granting relief to the petitioners, the court directed the authorities to halt further works on the disputed lands until the compensation issue is resolved.