Panaji: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced on Tuesday that all pending mundkarial cases will be resolved within three months, granting mundkars their rightful ownership. Currently, over 2,000 mundkarial matters are pending across various revenue courts in Goa.
Majho Flat Scheme for Flat Owners
Sawant also unveiled the Majho Flat scheme aimed at addressing the difficulties faced by flat owners, many of whom do not hold rights over the land. The Chief Minister handed over 450 sanands (certificates) to legalize houses in North Goa.
Regularisation of Houses Across Communities
He emphasized that houses belonging to all castes and religions have been regularized. Within the next six months, all concerns related to irregular houses will be addressed. “Hindus, Muslims, and Christians have benefited from the Majhe Ghar scheme,” Sawant stated.
The Chief Minister reiterated that within three months, all mundkarial cases would be disposed of, and houses would be recorded in the names of mundkars.
Bombay High Court Directives
In 2023, the Bombay High Court at Goa instructed all mamlatdars to ensure that such matters are decided within six months from the date of filing. The division bench of Justices M S Sonak and Valmiki Menezes directed both collectors to “analyse the pendency of each taluka and properly assign the cases to revenue officers.” The bench also instructed collectors to deploy mamlatdars with lower pendency to other talukas to expedite disposals, by passing suitable orders to empower the officers. “The collector is enjoined to regularly assess the workload on the revenue officers,” the High Court stated.
Problems Faced by Flat Owners
Sawant noted that flat owners have been dealing with numerous problems for the past 40 years, and in many instances, the land has not been transferred to the Society or the flat owners. The government will ensure rights for flat owners so they can repair or redevelop their buildings.
The Chief Minister also mentioned that he would soon disclose the identity of the person who challenged the state government’s Majhe Ghar scheme in court.
Sawant clarified that the government is not providing land free of cost to anyone. “State government recovers the money. We will fight in court. We have already had a fight with the opposition in the assembly, and now, the time has come for the public to confront the opposition when they come to their houses to seek votes,” he said.
Regularisation of Houses
The Chief Minister stated that the government has been regularizing houses after passing a law in the assembly, and that seven opposition MLAs had opposed the Bill. He cited an example from 1980 when a beneficiary was allotted land under the 20-point programme by the state government and built a house, but now her neighbor has been filing complaints seeking demolition.
Sawant said Goans built houses during the Portuguese era when there were no talathi and secretary. “Today, the secretary and talathi are asking for documents. Even old houses cannot be renovated. To solve this problem, the Majhe Ghar scheme was introduced,” he concluded.
