Bhubaneswar, 6 December (H.S.): The Odisha Government has identified nearly 400 acres of land belonging to Lord Jagannath outside the state, Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan informed the Assembly on Saturday. Responding to a query raised by Rengali MLA Sudarshan Haripal of the BJD, the Minister stated that a total of 395.252 acres of Jagannath land have been traced across six states.
According to official information, the largest portion of this land is located in West Bengal, where 322.930 acres have been identified. Significant parcels have also been traced in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Bihar.
The Minister further informed the House that within Odisha, 60,426.943 acres of land in the name of Lord Jagannath are spread across 24 districts. Revised land records for 38,061.792 acres are currently available with the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), Puri.
Harichandan added that verification exercises have uncovered multiple instances of illegal occupation of Jagannath Temple land, prompting further scrutiny and corrective measures by the administration.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda
