31 May, Kathmandu. On Thursday, the allocated budget of the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation was discussed in the House of Representatives.
Most of the parliamentarians who participated in the ministerial discussion of the budget sought the government’s clarity on the land use policy. They pointed out the need for a clear policy on land use as the government policy is not clear and the land is being used for other purposes.
The parliamentarians have argued that land classification and integrated land use policy are very necessary for the implementation of the government’s plans such as establishing industries, creating jobs and investing in agriculture.
CPN Maoist Center whip Rupa Soshi Choudhary says that unless the government is clear on the land use policy, other development plans cannot be implemented in the right sense.
The government has announced that it will be a decade of agricultural production. For this, first of all, the land should be properly managed’, she says, ‘If the land use policy is not correct, this plan cannot be successful.’
Metmani Choudhary, chief whip of CPN United Socialist Party, says that the country cannot be given the right momentum until the fact that they are in a ‘landless and landless society’ is broken.
Claiming that there is inequality in the society because of land, the gap between the rich and the poor is widening and the exploitation of peasants is existing, he says, ‘He who is a farmer does not have land.’
He suggested the government to go ahead with the policy of making all the land government.
‘We should be able to make a policy to bring all the land under the name of the government. The country should move forward in this direction. I want to draw the government’s attention to making the whole land government by making a single policy,’ said MP Chaudhary.
He believes that by doing this, the exploitation of the people due to the land will end.
Chaudhary said, ‘After taking all the land in the name of the government, a policy can be made to provide land based on need. By doing this, we can end the exploitation of the people due to the land.’
In Nepal, there are currently various Acts/Laws and regulations etc. related to land. There is also a land policy to guide all these.
But any existing legal provisions cannot clarify what the government’s land use policy is, says CPN-UML MP Thakur Gayre.
‘There is a problem of poverty in the country. There is a problem with government land. Sukum residents have a problem. It is not possible to implement the land use policy without solving it,’ says MP Gayre, ‘We cannot move forward with other important development work without solving the problem of land classification and use.’
CPN Maoist Center MP Narayani Sharma suggests the government to adopt a policy of land classification immediately.
‘Unifying the land in the hills and classifying the land in the plains. Where to build a school, where to build a house and where to run an industry? We should be clear about this,’ suggested MP Sharma to the government.
Chief Whip of Rashtriya Prajatantra Party (RPPA) Gyan Bahadur (Gyanendra) says that Minister of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Balram Adhikari should be strict about the classification of royal lands.
He urged that the land should be classified and according to the classification, mining, industrial, agricultural and residential land should be used only for these purposes and a strict decision should be taken. Otherwise, he feels that the country cannot become a country.
“Make an unpleasant decision, wherever there are slums, make a policy that no one can operate mines in those slums,” he urged Land Minister Balram Adhikari. After that MP Shahi believes that the country will go on the right path.
Mentioning that the arable land is disappearing, he said that everyone should be serious. Parliamentarian Shahi warns that if the land cannot be improved, the future of Nepal will turn towards darkness.
On 5 May 2079, the Land Use Regulations 2079 were approved by the Council of Ministers. Accordingly, on 31 July 2080, the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation issued a circular to local levels across the country to classify land.
According to the regulations, the classification of land in agriculture, residential, commercial, industrial, mining and mineral, forest, river, river, lake, wetland, public use, cultural and archaeological importance and other areas specified by the government of Nepal must be mandatory. Despite the correspondence, the classification of the land has not been done.
Madhav Sapkota, MP of CPN-Maoist Center, says that due to lack of land classification, arable land is being haphazardly plotted. His question is, ‘What is the minister’s opinion on the matter of land?’
Nepali Congress Member of Parliament Arjun Narsingh KC says that Nepal will not be formed until a proper land use policy is made. He says, ‘Until we make a land policy, Nepal will not be formed. There is a tendency to use dozers everywhere. But the government has not been serious.’
He suggested to the government to create what kind of environment should be created to get the right land use policy.
KC is of the opinion that the government can move forward even with this policy if it would be easier to take action against those who embezzle government and public land.
Congress MP KC adds, ‘The government should have the courage to take action no matter which party is involved in embezzling public land, no matter how powerful it is.’
Maoist Center MP Vimala Subedi suggests re-surveying of land across the country. He is of the opinion that re-measurement should also be done to solve problems such as guthi.
‘There is no need to continue Guthi anymore. Let’s measure it once again across the country with a policy to solve it correctly,’ she said. He believes that the land classification and utilization policy can be implemented during re-surveying.
