The winter session of the Telangana legislature that closed last weekend will be long remembered for adopting the Telangana Bhu Bharati (Record of Rights in Land) Bill 2024 replacing the Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar Pass Books Act 2020. A similar law is being tried in several other states, but the one in Telangana promises to bring relief to lakhs of farmers and agricultural land holders who had been running from pillar to post following the enactment of the 2020 law, under which the Dharani portal came into being and led to chaos in land records.
The purpose of Dharani, the brainchild of the previous BRS government, was the same—to address land disputes and digitise the records. However, it was riddled with flaws, including the lack of a redress mechanism that could catch up with the spate of complaints pouring in. With land rates shooting up, more unscrupulous people usurped the lands of genuine owners, forcing many to either lose their land or move the courts. The Congress government brought in the new legislation to untangle this web and improve transparency. We welcome this bill as it incorporates several measures to give hope to those affected by the Dharani portal. The new system will bring in district appellate tribunals, Bhudar cards and proper surveys. It will also require revenue officials at village level to maintain manual records and allow space for protection of government lands. The power to address grievances has been given back to tahsildars, revenue divisional officers and collectors, so that people need not have to wait for long. Interestingly, the bill also seeks to rope in volunteers to give legal advice to the poor for free. It also makes succession in landholding much simpler.
The government must be appreciated for placing the draft bill in the public domain for suggestions and incorporating the opposition’s recommendations. Now, as the saying goes, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating. The law needs to ensure that past mistakes are not repeated and lower-rung officials do not play spoilsport in a well-laid framework. After all, land triggers deep emotions in people, especially farmers. Erring officials must be strictly punished and those already proven to have been involved in Dharani’s irregularities must face the stern face of the law.