Encroachments on waterbodies not eligible for patta under Tamil Nadu government’s special scheme

Chennai: Encroachments on waterbodies, marsh, swamp, forest area, cantonment, and railway land will not be eligible to get pattas under Tamil Nadu govt's one-time special regularisation scheme.
The revenue and disaster management department recently issued a govt order for a one-time relaxation of the ban on the issuance of house site assignments in the city and suburbs. The scheme will be implemented until Dec 31, and it was also announced in the state budget.
"The regularization will not happen in any of the waterbodies. People living in odai poromboke, eri poromboke, or those living in catchments must not apply for the scheme. Even temple poromboke and land belonging to the union govt is restricted for pattas," said an official with the commissionerate of land administration department.
The govt has formed a district-level committee to scrutinise the proposals with the district collector as chairman. The proposals will be re-examined by a state-level committee headed by the chief secretary.
According to guidelines prepared by the department, those in Chennai living for ten years in unobjectionable govt poramboke lands and some objectionable poramboke lands, like Vandipathai, Pattai, Pathai, Mayanam, and Thoppu lands, are eligible for the regularisation.
Their annual family income should not be more than three lakhs. In the GCC area, land less than one cent will be regularised at no cost, while a maximum of 2 cents of land will be regularised by collecting land value.
The survey will begin shortly, said the official.