Bhubaneswar, 14 July (H.S.): The Odisha government has directed Revenue Divisional Commissioners (RDCs), Collectors and senior revenue officials to accord top priority to the protection, management and restoration of land belonging to Lord Shree Jagannatha Mahaprabhu, while ensuring the expeditious disposal of 11,675 pending revenue cases filed by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA).

In a 'Most Urgent' communication issued , Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, instructed the Secretary, Board of Revenue, RDCs, Collectors and the Director of Land Records and Surveys to personally monitor the progress of these cases and ensure their disposal in accordance with statutory provisions, government instructions and court orders.

The government has expressed serious concern over issues related to the recording, protection and management of Jagannath Temple land, directing district administrations to take immediate steps to safeguard the deity's properties.

Among the key directives is the early disposal of 11,675 miscellaneous revenue cases pending in tahasils across Khordha, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Ganjam, Cuttack and Kendrapada districts. Officials have also been asked to implement orders passed by the Board of Revenue in 257 cases filed under Section 7(A) of the Odisha Estates Abolition Act.

The communication further instructs Tahasildars to examine the 1927-28 Record-of-Rights and initiate necessary corrections of Khewats, taking into account the Supreme Court's order setting aside the March 18, 1974 vesting notification relating to Lord Jagannath's endowment properties under the Odisha Estates Abolition Act.

Revenue authorities have been directed to verify historical land records, including pre-Sabik and Sabik Record-of-Rights, while adjudicating temple land disputes to ensure accurate determination of ownership. They have also been asked to provide authenticated land records and correlation reports to the SJTA to facilitate effective legal proceedings before the Board of Revenue.

To strengthen protection of temple properties, Collectors have been instructed to deploy experienced Revenue Inspectors, Amins and other field staff for identification, verification and regular inspection of Jagannath Temple lands to prevent encroachment, unauthorised occupation, fraudulent claims and illegal transfer of ownership.

The Additional Chief Secretary has directed that progress on all temple land-related matters be reviewed every month at district, sub-divisional and tahasil-level meetings, with monthly progress reports to be submitted to the Revenue and Disaster Management Department.

The government said the initiative is aimed at ensuring effective preservation of Lord Jagannatha's landed properties, safeguarding the interests of the deity and reducing avoidable litigation over temple lands.

Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda