Thiruvananthapuram: The state government has begun steps to recover plantation lands that were illegally secured from foreign companies.
As a first step, the government has issued an order taking over 6,217 acres of land now in the possession of RBT Company, and spread over Elappara, Peeru-medu and Periyar villages in Idukki district.
A notice, issued on Wednesday under the Land Protection Rules, 1958, has given RBT Company 15 days to vacate the land. The recovery procedures have been initiated under the leadership of M.G. Rajamanickam, the special officer in charge of recovering alienated government lands.
The 6,217 acres is part of the 9,265 acres that had been in the possession of the British company, Travancore Tea Estate. As per records sourced from Mumbai’s land revenue office, Travancore Tea Estate had registered 9,265 acres in the name of Ram Bahadur Thakur, a Bihar resident, on September 17, 1976. “This deed has no legal validity,” a top Revenue Department official said.
Mr Thakur is then shown to have transferred the land to three entities: RBT (CBS) - 3,116 acres; RBT (MMS) - 3,101 acres; Poabs Group - 3,048 acres.
