Patna, Mar 14 (PTI) The Bihar government said on Tuesday that its revenue and land reforms department would take up on a "priority basis" land transfer requests for projects under the MP and MLA local area development schemes, and issue clearance certificates at the earliest.

Making this announcement in the assembly on Tuesday, Alok Kumar Mehta, the revenue and land reforms minister, said that a time limit would be fixed for the issuance of the certificates.

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"Henceforth, MP and MLAs will not have to wait for long for getting clearance certificates involving transfer of land for initiating work under the local area development schemes," he said.

Under the local area development schemes, MPs and MLAs can advise district collectors to take up development work in their respective constituencies.

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Concluding a debate on his department's budget for 2023-24, the minister also tabled a report submitted by the three-member commission that was set up by the Bihar government in 2017 to check paperwork of the land donated during the Bhoodan movement.

He said that the government would soon initiate the process for distribution of around 1,04 lakh acres, donated during the movement, among the landless people of the state.

The commission, in its report, said the Bihar government has so far distributed 2,56,664 acres of land, out of total 6,48,593 acres donated during Bhoodan Andolan.

It also said that another 1.04 lakh acres have been found fit for distribution.

The assembly, during the day, passed the revenue and land reforms department's budget for the next fiscal by voice vote.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)