Srinagar, Oct 29 (KNO): The Jammu and Kashmir Government has delineated over 21,000 kanal of land in the Jammu Division under the provisions of the J&K Water Resources (Regulation and Management) Act, 2010, while no such delineation has been carried out in the Kashmir Division so far, the Revenue Department has said.
In a written reply to a question by MLA Rajiv Jasrotia, the department, per news agency--Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that the delineation and demarcation process is being conducted to avoid disputes in water sources and courses following the issuance of SRO-456 dated October 25, 2017.
The government said that the Administrative Council vide Decision No. 17/1/2022 dated January 29, 2022, had ordered the constitution of three-tier committees to oversee delineation or demarcation of lands not forming part of any water source but recorded as Gair Mumkin Khad, Gair Mumkin Darya or Gair Mumkin Nallah in revenue records.
It informed that a total area of 21,697 kanal and 17 marla has been delineated in Jammu Division, while in District Kathua, 15,057 kanal and 01 marla (including both state and private land) have been demarcated.
"To examine issues relating to Gair Mumkin Khad and similar categories, the Government has constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Deputy Chief Minister, which shall submit its report within three months," it said, adding that the Jal Shakti Department will service the committee.
The government said that since the delineation exercise is technical in nature, the Jal Shakti Department, being the nodal agency for water management, has been assigned responsibility for the task as per the prescribed statutory authority—(KNO)