Over a two-year period spanning 2019 and 2020, the Gujarat State Government's Revenue Department received a substantial influx of approximately 56,000 applications seeking permission to convert agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes.
This information was revealed on Saturday by the state's revenue minister, Kaushik Patel, during the ongoing budget session of the Gujarat Assembly. He provided these details when responding to a series of inquiries raised by Congress MLAs. Patel's written response in the assembly elaborated on the significant land area involved, indicating the sheer volume of requests concerning 57.73 crore square meters of agricultural land designated for conversion to alternative uses. The government granted approval for the transformation of a considerable portion of this land, with 13.47 crore square meters receiving permission in 2020 and 16.80 crore square meters in 2019.
The minister's written statements also shed light upon the substantial financial gains accrued by the state from these conversions. In 2019, the government's coffers swelled by Rs 1,152.33 crore, while 2020 witnessed revenue generation of Rs 899.95 crore, specifically attributed to permits issued for agricultural land conversion. This financial outcome stems directly from the conversion permissions granted by Gujarat for repurposing agricultural land in 2019 and 2020.
These figures demonstrate that out of the extensive 57.73 crore square meters of land for which applications flooded in, the government has already sanctioned the conversion of approximately 30.27 crore square meters from its agricultural designation to non-agricultural purposes during the years 2019 and 2020. If this trend persists, the Revenue Department is poised to authorize yet more conversions of agricultural land for non-agricultural uses.
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