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Salt dept red flags bid to ‘grab’ 950 acres
Mumbai: The Union commerce ministry's salt department has blown the whistle on a property developer's bid to grab 950 acres of salt pan in Pen taluka of Raigad district, near the proposed international airport, 80km from here.
Salt pan tracts have existed around Mumbai for over five centuries and, once developed, could be worth their weight in gold. Construction firm Arrow Engineering, the salt department claims, has been "illegally" negotiating with Pen's salt cultivators to buy land for its 1,545-acre township project, Arrow City Manhattan.
The salt department says it owns the salt pans. But Arrow Engineering director Vineet Malhotra insists the land belongs to the state government, not to the Centre. "We have applied to the state to lease us around 280 acres of salt pan. These lands are still in possession of the cultivators,'' he told TOI.
'Firm luring cultivators into selling salt pans'
Mumbai: The Centre-run salt department has accused Arrow Engineering of trying to grab salt-pan lands in Pen taluka, even as disputes over ownership of these lands have persisted for decades.
The Union commerce ministry owns these tracts. But many private owners who've been making salt here for generations have challenged this in court. No development is allowed on salt pan land under the existing rules.
Arrow's Malhotra debunked the salt department's ownership claim saying pan owners, who had the resources, approached the courts and got these plots registered in their names after Independence.
But, a state government official said there was no merit in Malhotra's claim. He confirmed that the Centre owned the pans and the state had no locus standi in the matter.
Some months ago, the salt department wrote to the state government complaining against the land grab attempt. It had spotted about 14 cases in Pen where the realtor had lured cultivators to sign preliminary agreements. "Many who have signed the papers have stopped manufacturing salt. The official leaseholders haven't taken action against these cultivators," the local salt inspector warned in a letter to the salt commissioner.
"Cultivators who haven't yet signed agreements with Arrow are waiting for the developer to offer them more money."
The salt department's complaint to the state government said the developer had bought farmland at Pen for its housing project. Now, he is trying to "illegally" acquire salt pans from the cultivators by giving them some amount and executing affidavits of possession before the tehsildar. His strategy, the department alleged, was to get the names of the cultivators included in the revenue records as owners. They would then be able to sell their plots in return for handsome amounts.
The department informed the government that the developer had told the cultivators to stop salt manufacture. "They fixed peg marks in our land for construction of a road, which our officers stopped,'' the letter said.
Malhotra denied these allegations and said a salt department official had submitted affidavits in court saying these lands belonged to the state government.
In 2007, the Bombay high court ruled that salt pan lessees whose lands the government acquired were not eligible for compensation. Those who were given licences to manufacture salt had no "right, title or interest'' on the land, it ruled.
The salt pan ownership dispute concerned lands acquired by City and Industrial Development Corporation and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in the 1970s. Until then, the land was collectively held by a group of people who were allotted the pans in the 1940s and 50s. Before that, the land was the private property of people who had migrated to Pakistan following Partition.
The Centre had issued a notification in 1972 to acquire all such land in Uran and other areas of Raigad district.
ACRES IN PEN UNDER THREAT?
In 2007, Arrow Engineering approaches state salt department with proposal to lease salt-pan lands in Pen
Centre owns all salt-pan lands in Maharashtra and salt dept comes under Union ministry of commerce
Salt dept turns down Arrow Engineering's proposal
Developer starts negotiating with salt cultivators, bypassing salt dept and salt manufacturers, to whom salt dept has leased land
Developer approaches state govt to try and get land on lease
Salt dept says land belongs to Centre
In 2011, salt dept submits list of 14 salt works in Pen where developer has allegedly illegally negotiated with salt cultivators
Salt pans are leased by govt to salt manufacturers, who in turn hire salt cultivators. Salt dept says cultivators are only workers and cannot stake claim to the land
Times View: Eco-sensitive salt pans must be saved
B uilders have set their gaze on the several thousand acres of salt-pan lands in and around Mumbai over the past decade. Politicians too want these tracts to be opened up to rehabilitate project-affected persons and slumdwellers. However, the eco-sensitive salt pans fall under the stringent Coastal Regulation Zone (1), which restricts any kind of development. Salt pans
•are essential for the well-being of the city as they act like sponge pockets to soak up rainwater. The government should let these stretches remain untouched as they are among the last green spaces in Mumbai.
Salt pan tracts have existed around Mumbai for over five centuries and, once developed, could be worth their weight in gold. Construction firm Arrow Engineering, the salt department claims, has been "illegally" negotiating with Pen's salt cultivators to buy land for its 1,545-acre township project, Arrow City Manhattan.
The salt department says it owns the salt pans. But Arrow Engineering director Vineet Malhotra insists the land belongs to the state government, not to the Centre. "We have applied to the state to lease us around 280 acres of salt pan. These lands are still in possession of the cultivators,'' he told TOI.
'Firm luring cultivators into selling salt pans'
Mumbai: The Centre-run salt department has accused Arrow Engineering of trying to grab salt-pan lands in Pen taluka, even as disputes over ownership of these lands have persisted for decades.
The Union commerce ministry owns these tracts. But many private owners who've been making salt here for generations have challenged this in court. No development is allowed on salt pan land under the existing rules.
Arrow's Malhotra debunked the salt department's ownership claim saying pan owners, who had the resources, approached the courts and got these plots registered in their names after Independence.
But, a state government official said there was no merit in Malhotra's claim. He confirmed that the Centre owned the pans and the state had no locus standi in the matter.
Some months ago, the salt department wrote to the state government complaining against the land grab attempt. It had spotted about 14 cases in Pen where the realtor had lured cultivators to sign preliminary agreements. "Many who have signed the papers have stopped manufacturing salt. The official leaseholders haven't taken action against these cultivators," the local salt inspector warned in a letter to the salt commissioner.
"Cultivators who haven't yet signed agreements with Arrow are waiting for the developer to offer them more money."
The salt department's complaint to the state government said the developer had bought farmland at Pen for its housing project. Now, he is trying to "illegally" acquire salt pans from the cultivators by giving them some amount and executing affidavits of possession before the tehsildar. His strategy, the department alleged, was to get the names of the cultivators included in the revenue records as owners. They would then be able to sell their plots in return for handsome amounts.
The department informed the government that the developer had told the cultivators to stop salt manufacture. "They fixed peg marks in our land for construction of a road, which our officers stopped,'' the letter said.
Malhotra denied these allegations and said a salt department official had submitted affidavits in court saying these lands belonged to the state government.
In 2007, the Bombay high court ruled that salt pan lessees whose lands the government acquired were not eligible for compensation. Those who were given licences to manufacture salt had no "right, title or interest'' on the land, it ruled.
The salt pan ownership dispute concerned lands acquired by City and Industrial Development Corporation and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in the 1970s. Until then, the land was collectively held by a group of people who were allotted the pans in the 1940s and 50s. Before that, the land was the private property of people who had migrated to Pakistan following Partition.
The Centre had issued a notification in 1972 to acquire all such land in Uran and other areas of Raigad district.
ACRES IN PEN UNDER THREAT?
In 2007, Arrow Engineering approaches state salt department with proposal to lease salt-pan lands in Pen
Centre owns all salt-pan lands in Maharashtra and salt dept comes under Union ministry of commerce
Salt dept turns down Arrow Engineering's proposal
Developer starts negotiating with salt cultivators, bypassing salt dept and salt manufacturers, to whom salt dept has leased land
Developer approaches state govt to try and get land on lease
Salt dept says land belongs to Centre
In 2011, salt dept submits list of 14 salt works in Pen where developer has allegedly illegally negotiated with salt cultivators
Salt pans are leased by govt to salt manufacturers, who in turn hire salt cultivators. Salt dept says cultivators are only workers and cannot stake claim to the land
Times View: Eco-sensitive salt pans must be saved
B uilders have set their gaze on the several thousand acres of salt-pan lands in and around Mumbai over the past decade. Politicians too want these tracts to be opened up to rehabilitate project-affected persons and slumdwellers. However, the eco-sensitive salt pans fall under the stringent Coastal Regulation Zone (1), which restricts any kind of development. Salt pans
•are essential for the well-being of the city as they act like sponge pockets to soak up rainwater. The government should let these stretches remain untouched as they are among the last green spaces in Mumbai.
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