Khammam: Report blames tahsildars for mess in land record purification

Khammam: The tahsildars of different mandals are being faulted for the mess in issuing pattadar passbooks.

Instead of checking the irregularities resorted to by village revenue officers in changing survey numbers, many of the tahsildars connived with them.

The government in its report says that tahsildars made a mess of the land records purification programme due to their nonchalant attitude.

Tahsildars were given all powers pertaining to the records of land rights and they entrusted the job to the village revenue officers, who did the job according to their whims.

Interestingly, the tahsildars made the people suffer by going by the advice of the VROs.

“The government is angry on land issues because of tahsildars as well as the VROs and has decided to change the revenue act,” said an official working in the revenue department.

According to one estimate, nearly Rs 200 crore has been lost because of corruption in Khammam and Bhadradri districts during the land records purification. Some of the VROs bought expensive cars and buildings in recent times and the illegal income of these employees has become a talking point among the people.

It can be recalled that Kothagudem collector Rajat Kumar Shaini made a statement about illegal activities to the tehsildar himself.

About 15 VROs were caught red-handed by ACB sleuths while taking bribes from farmers over the last 15 months in Khammam and Kothagudem districts.

The VROs and the tehsildars have been spending crores of rupees to come out of the departmental enquiries and ACB cases.

The unions of VROs and tehsildars are powerful enough and are working in favour of the revenue staff, who are facing ACB cases. E. Haribabu, a chartered accountant said that the revenue system was involved in corruption and some changes were required to cleanse it.