Maharashtra Government Orders All Leased Government Lands Registered in State Name Nagpur: The Maharashtra government has implemented a significant policy change to enhance control over government land and address alleged misuse of leasehold properties. Effective immediately, all leased government lands across the state will be officially registered under the name of the "Government of Maharashtra" (GoM) in land ownership records. This directive, issued by Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule at the behest of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, aims to rectify longstanding discrepancies in land records and prevent leaseholders from treating government-owned plots as private property. The decision mandates a three-month verification drive led by district collectors to identify and correct land records where leaseholders were previously listed as "occupants" instead of the state. Officials revealed that numerous cases had emerged in which individuals or entities holding long-term leases—spanning 30, 99, or even 999 years—had been permitted to register themselves as occupants without formal state approval. This practice, according to the government, created confusion over ownership and led to disputes over land rights. Under the new policy, the "occupant" column in all land records will exclusively reflect the state’s name, while details about leaseholders, lease duration, and conditions will be documented separately under the "other rights" category. The policy also includes specific instructions for Mumbai, where authorities are directed to update restrictions related to the transfer of leasehold government land in property records.#mumbai #maharashtra_government #devendra_fadnavis #chandrashekhar_bawankule #maharashtra_land_revenue_code
Maharashtra Govt Decentralizes Land Regularisation Powers, Collectors to Handle 90% of Cases The Maharashtra legislature on Wednesday passed the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2026, marking a significant shift in the state’s approach to land regularisation. The legislation, introduced by revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, empowers district-level authorities to handle the majority of cases involving breaches of land-use conditions. This decentralised framework allows collectors and divisional commissioners to resolve nearly 90% of such cases locally, aiming to reduce bureaucratic delays and improve access to administrative remedies for citizens. The bill replaces the previous system, where even minor land-use violations were referred to the state secretariat in Mumbai, creating a backlog and forcing citizens to make repeated trips to the capital. Bawankule highlighted that this centralised process placed an immense workload on the Mantralaya, the state’s administrative headquarters. Under the new system, only cases of exceptionally high value will continue to be handled at the state level, while routine matters will be resolved at the district level. The amendment addresses longstanding gaps in the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, which previously lacked clear statutory provisions for regularisation. This absence led to legal ambiguities and prolonged litigation, with many cases remaining unresolved for years. The new provisions, including Section 37A, introduce a codified legal framework to streamline the process and ensure uniformity in decision-making across districts. Officials noted that the lack of defined rules had created procedural uncertainties, often disadvantaging small landholders and businesses.#maharashtra_govt #chandrashekhar_bawankule #maharashtra_legislature #maharashtra_land_revenue_code #mantralaya
