The Orissa government, without any specified policy or procedure, has allotted government land to several individuals, government and private organisations, causing serious financial losses to the state exchequer, said the CAG report presented in the Assembly on Saturday.
The CAG, in its latest report on general and social sector for the year ended March 31, 2012, said the general administration (GA) department allotted 464.47 acres in the city in 337 cases during 2000-12 to individuals, government offices and government undertakings as well as private bodies for establishment of hotels, hospitals, educational institutions and non-government organisations. Of this, 183.44 acres were allotted to non-government institutions and organisations.
A test check of 164 out of 337 cases by the CAG revealed that the process of allotment of land lacked a defined policy and procedure. The Central auditor held that absence of any rule or criteria to govern the allotment process gave room for arbitrariness in allotment.
“There was no uniformity in disposal of applications, sanction of concession on premium to be paid, cha-nges in land use plan and resumption of encroached land. Proclamations inviting public objections as stipulated in Orissa government land settlement rules was not published in any of the test checked cases,” the report mentioned.
Site selection committee, a body specifically constituted to examine the eligibility of allotment, was bypassed in 19 out of 164 test checked cases while allotting 112.15 acres of land. Apart from this, recommendation of the respective administrative departments was not obtained in 15 cases for allotment of 39.27 acres of land.
The CAG report has also pointed out that non-revision of land premium as well as benchmark valuation of land brought in loss of `251.92 crore for the government during 1998-2009.
Despite stipulation in the acts and rules to put public land (other than public purpose) into auction, the GA department did not apply auction method in case of allotment of 154.47 acres, though the prevailing market rate was 4.78 times more than the benchmark value, thereby, foregoing the opportunity of earning substantial revenue for the government, the report said.
The CAG report said Posco India Pvt Limited, which had applied for 12,000 square feet land for its chief managing director’s residence-cum-guest house in 2006, later enhanced the requirement to 25,000 square feet in April 2007 and later 2 acres in for the same purpose.