Demarcation of land along Yamuna begins

Parveen Arora

Tribune News Service

Karnal, October 23

The Survey of India has started demarcation of land in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh along the Yamuna in view of decades-old disputes between farmers in both states over ownership and possession.

The process has begun on trial basis at Badi Kalan village in Karnal, where pillars will be erected to serve as the boundary between the two states. A stretch spanning around 300 km along the Yamuna between Yamunanagar and Palwal will be covered.

“The Survey of India has marked the spots where the pillars will be erected. The process to erect pillars for demarcation has been started. A total of 44 pillars will be erected — 24 by the Uttar Pradesh PWD and 20 by the Haryana PWD,” said Nishant Kumar Yadav, DC.

He said the Roorkee ITI would check the quality of these pillars. “Around 10 villages in Karnal, Indri and Gharaunda blocks have been involved in disputes for the past several years,” he said.

“The governments of the two states held a joint meeting in January to find a permanent solution. It was decided to construct pillars again at locations where these were missing. The PWD in both states will complete the task,” said Gaurav Kumar Singh, Deputy Superintendent, Haryana and Punjab office, Survey of India.

Disputes over thousands of acres had been going on among farmers in villages along the inter-state border since the 1950s, leading to bloody clashes. Changes in course of the Yamuna had been causing confusion over ownership of land.

Crops sown by farmers in one state were being harvested by farmers of the other state. The Dixit Committee was set up in the 1970s to sort out the issue. The committee demarcated the land in 1979, taking the flow of the Yamuna at that time as the border between the two states.