HYDERABAD: Reclamation of all alienated government lands, which remain unused, and pursuing land-related court cases will be taken up on priority in view of the huge need for land in Hyderabad for the city’s development, district collector Rahul Bojja says.
In an interview with Express, Bojja, who has taken charge as collector recently, says that besides taking steps to protect government lands, the focus will also be on improving infrastructure at schools and details the steps being taken for improving the performance of Hyderabad students in tenth class. Excerpts from the interview:
It has been more than two weeks since you took charge. By now, you might have got a clear picture of Hyderabad’s problems.
Yes. Protection of government lands is a major and difficult task in Hyderabad district. Many valuable government lands are being encroached upon and many lands are stuck in court cases. There are 1,500 to 2,000 court cases involving government lands. Most of the cases relate to encroachment of government lands by creating fake documents. We have also found that many lands given to other government departments or central government organisations are not being utilised completely. We want to take up a multi-pronged strategy to reclaim all the government lands and protect them from future encroachments.
What steps are you contemplating?
First, we want to reclaim all the unused government lands given to other government departments. Huge chunks of lands had been given to departments like irrigation, roads & buildings and central government organisations long ago when land was not scarce. But we found that many of these lands are not optimally utilised. We want every yard of government land optimally utilised. There is huge need for government land in the city today as the present government is planning many developmental works here. We have also initiated steps to expedite all land-related court cases.
Any steps being taken to reclaim government land located in defence and Cantonment areas?
We have spotted both small and large tracts of state government lands in the Cantonment area. But they had been given long ago during Nizam rule or later, and there are no proper documents. Revenue officials have been asked to conduct a field study and prepare documents. We are working in coordination with defence and Cantonment authorities.
Hyderabad fares poorly in tenth class results? Any steps being taken for improvement of schools?
Schools are plagued with infrastructure problems. We have taken steps in this regard and conducted a survey this week. It is found that about 200 of the 800-odd government schools in the city do not have toilets and drinking water. We want to act swiftly on improving basic facilities at all schools. I have directed the DEO and MEOs to focus on academic development of students right from the beginning of academic year to improve pass percentage in tenth class examinations.
Normally, compared to their counterparts in districts, Hyderabad students do not focus on studies with undivided attention due to various social factors. To change this mindset and make them understand the importance of education, we are planning to take special classes right from the beginning of academic year and, if needed, will also counsel students and their parents.
What are other problems which district administration is focusing on?
Another major problem in Hyderabad is lack of proper health facilities. Many urban health centres and area hospitals are plagued with various problems like lack of buildings. My immediate priority is to make sure that all the hospitals are strengthened and poor people are provided the best health facilities with the available resources. People can come up with any complaint or problem at Prajavani programme held at the collectorate every Monday and we will ensure that their problems are solved without delay.