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Odisha: How land grab became a fine art under the Naveen regime
FirstpostBhubaneswar: When the Naveen Patnaik government orders an inquiry by the state crime branch or the vigilance into something, you know for sure that it does not want the truth in the matter to come out. But much as the government would like to keep things under the wraps, at least one big name is out in the open: that of Kalpataru Das, Rajya Sabha MP and former minister, who has had a meteoric rise since the fall from grace of Naveen Patnaik’s erstwhile mentor Pyari Mohan Mohapatra. Revelations made by the CAG and the media in the last one month or so suggest that the provision of the much maligned ‘discretionary quota’ has been used effectively as a licence to acquire property in prime locations in the Twin City of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack at throwaway prices by the powers that be. Agriculture Minister Pradip Maharathy has availed of a house from the State Housing Board despite having an ancestral house in the city, a gross violation of the rules governing the discretionary quota. Last year, Forest and Environment Minister Bikram Keshari Arukh had to return one of the two houses he had acquired under the much maligned quota.
History of this topic
BJP MP seeks CM, DGP’s intervention to halt ‘land grab’
The Hindu
Odisha proposes change in definition of homesteadless
The Hindu
Eviction of illegal occupants from tribal land soon: Odisha Minister Suresh Pujari
New Indian Express
Odisha moves to strictly weigh land requirement before acquisition
The Hindu
Barring Odisha and Punjab, no state acquired land under UPA law - India TV News
India TV News
Land grabbing set to be cognizable offence in Odisha
India TV NewsDiscover Related
Land transferred to company for mango plantation being grabbed, say farmers in Komarada mandal
The Hindu
