Nityalal Das v. The Lt.Governor And ORS.
IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
[ CIRCUIT BENCH AT PORT BLAIR ] *** WPA/440/2024 Nityalal Das Vs The Lieutenant Governor and others Ms. G. Mini ... for the petitioner Ms. Babita Das ... for the respondents August 30, 2024 [SR] Item No.4 The petitioner says that he had encroached a forest land measuring about 1.60 hectare at Gandhi Nagar Village within the jurisdiction of Diglipur Forest, North and Andaman District, prior to 1978. The Government has decided to provide the encroachers of the forest land like the petitioner, a plot of one hectare of land in a portion of the same forest but in a deserved portion thereof. A notice was issued by the Divisional Forest Officer on 27th May, 2002 to the petitioner stating that, within one month from the date of receipt of the said notice, the petitioner has to vacate the encroached land for enabling the government to allot an area of one hectare situated at Gandhi Nagar in a de-served block.
The petitioner says that, despite several orders having been passed, the concerned authorities have not taken any step for allotting one hectare land to the petitioner at Gandhi Nagar de-reserved block.
The petitioner says that he is residing in the encroached land with his family till date. Once the encroached land is made over without a plot of land in the de-reserved block being handed over to the petitioner, the petitioner will be without any shelter which will cause immense hardship to the petitioner and his family members.
On behalf of the respondents, it is submitted that resurvey of the land, which has been sought to be de-reserved in Gandhi Nagar, is continuing and it will take about six months time to allot the land to the petitioner in the de-reserved block of the forest in Gandhi Nagar Block.
The petitioner undertakes to vacate and make over the possession of the encroached land in the forest within Gandhi Nagar Block immediately upon the petitioner is issued a possession certificate with a license and given the physical possession of the alternative one hectare land in Diglipur Forest at Gandhi Nagar in a de-reserved block. In the aforesaid facts and circumstances, the writ petition is disposed of by directing the respondents and each one of them to allot one hectare land in Gandhi Nagar de-reserved block as has already been decided within a period of six months from date or within such extended period on the condition that the petitioner on being put into the physical possession of such land with proper licence being issued to the petitioner, shall immediately vacate the land failing which the allotment shall stand cancelled and the concerned authority shall be free to evict the petitioner from the allotted land as
also the encroached land. The respondents, till the allotment of the plot at the de-reserved block is made, shall not disturb the petitioner's possession of the encroached land. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of. Since I have not invited any affidavits, the allegations contained in the writ petition are deemed to have not been admitted by the respondents.
( Arindam Mukherjee, J. )