From Our Correspondent
NONGPOH, May 25: In the wake of a bone of contention between Nongpoh Town Committee and Raid Nongpoh over the ownership of a plot of land in Nongpoh, Ri-Bhoi Deputy Commissioner Arpit Upadhyaya, while citing a preliminary inquiry report, has revealed that the land belongs to Nongpoh Town Committee.
The dispute centres around a portion of land where the Nongpoh Town Committee had constructed interlocking concrete block pavement for a parking space.
However, Raid Nongpoh had laid claim to the land, accusing the Nongpoh Town Committee of green-lighting the demolition of its property there.
Following the receipt of a complaint from the Nongpoh Town Committee, the deputy commissioner had initiated a magisterial inquiry into the issue.
“According to the preliminary inquiry report and the map from the Urban Affairs Department, the land, claimed by Raid Nongpoh, belongs to the Nongpoh Town Committee,” Upadhyaya said during a media briefing on Friday.
Upadhyaya informed that the plot of land was originally gifted by Raid Nongpoh to the Nongpoh Town Committee in 2000, with a compensation of Rs. 10,000 paid at that time.
Additionally, in 2006, the land was acquired by the government under the Land Acquisition Act as part of the four-lane widening project.
“If any encroachment or attempts to usurp government land are identified, necessary actions will be taken accordingly,” the DC said, informing that the inquiry is still under way.