113 acres found in Bihar: State tourism department had no idea it existed

Of the 113 acres, 49 came from Nalanda which was the home district of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

The Bihar tourism department found 113 acres of “missing” land it did not know it possessed, according to Indian Express.

The matter came to light when the tourism department was going through old communication with the state’s land and revenue department for the last three decades.

Officials told Indian Express the land was discovered to be either “gair majarua” or abandoned land or encroached upon. As per the report, the land had previously belonged to some other government department and land mutation was not carried out. Mutation is the process through which the local revenue records are updated with a change in land ownership.

The tourism department is conducting a special drive to identify and develop land that it owns, especially along national highways.

The state has been trying to make special efforts to boost its tourism sector. “We had been visiting our communication with the land and revenue department over the last 30 years and assigned an officer for the purpose (when the discovery was made),” Bihar tourism minister Nitish Mishra told Indian Express.

Mishra said the department has received the block and district-wise details of this land.

Of the 113 acres, 49 came from Nalanda which was the home district of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. This was followed by 22 acres in Saharsa, 13 acres in Munger, 12 acres in Vaishali, 9 acres in Bhagalpur, and 5 acres in West Champaran.

According to the minister, the tourism department faced some resistance from the public earlier this year while taking back possession of about 10 acres that had been “encroached” in Gaya. “An FIR was registered against some farmers for obstructing government officials for doing their duty,” Mishra told Indian Express.

An official told Indian Express that the tourism department will use this newly discovered land to build tourist facilities along highways. The discovery comes at a time when the Bihar government is creating a land bank of 5,000 acres to woo investors.

Boost to in Union Budget

Finance minister Sitharaman in Union Budget 2024-25 had unveiled a series of initiatives aimed at enhancing tourism in the state.

In Bihar, the Vishnupad Temple Corridor and the Mahabodhi Temple Corridor are set to undergo comprehensive development. These sites, rich in religious and historical importance, will be transformed into world-class pilgrim and tourist destinations, modelled after the successful Kashi-Vishwanath Corridor project.

Rajgir, another historically significant location, will also see extensive development. Nalanda will be developed as a major tourist centre with plans to revive the prestigious Nalanda University to its former glory.