Surprise discovery: Bihar tourism dept finds 113 acres of 'lost land'

The land piece was 'discovered' during a review of old communications with the land and revenue department, as part of the tourism department's initiative to identify and develop its land holdings

The Bihar tourism department, earlier this year, uncovered a surprising fact while reviewing government communications from the past 30 years — it had 113 acres of land that were completely off the radar, with no written records to indicate its ownership.

An Indian Express report quoted officials as saying that the land was classified as either ‘gair majarua’ (abandoned) or encroached land. In many instances, the land originally belonged to other government departments, and the process of updating the local revenue records, known as land mutation, was still incomplete when the land was discovered.

Tourism dept unveils hidden lands

This finding occurred during a thorough examination of old communications with the state’s land and revenue department, part of a special initiative by the tourism department to identify and develop its land holdings, particularly those located along national highways, the report said.

The report quoted Bihar tourism minister Nitish Mishra as saying, “We had been visiting our communication with the land and revenue department over the past 30 years and assigned an officer for the purpose (when the discovery was made). After this exercise, we got block and district-wise details of this land.”

Out of the total 113 acres:

-49 acres came from Nalanda

-22 acres came from Saharsa

-13 acres from Munger,

-12 acres from Vaishali

-9 acres from Bhagalpur and

-5 acres from West Champaran

Earlier this year, the tourism department encountered opposition from the public while reclaiming around 10 acres of land that had been ‘encroached’ upon in Gaya, the minister said, as quoted by the report.

An FIR was filed against several farmers for hindering government officials in performing their duties, according to Mishra.

New tourist hubs planned along highways

An official mentioned that the department intends to use this newly identified land for developing tourist facilities along highways. Notably, this development aligns with the Bihar government's current initiative to establish a 5,000-acre land bank aimed at attracting investors to the state.

The report quoted the state tourism minister as saying, “We were very thrilled to trace out our land plot along the East-West Corridor in Supaul. We are going to develop it for travellers by providing facilities such as restaurants and washrooms. We also recovered a land plot near Punaura Dham (considered the birthplace of Hindu goddess Sita) in Sitamarhi. In most cases of land recovery, we have erected boundary walls.”