The parliamentary Agriculture and Water Resources Committee has cleared the way for implementation of amended Lands Act 2021 that had been under a debate for a very long time now. Fragmentation of fertile land and unplanned urbanisation are few to name among many underlying problems of real estate sector in the country.
Nepal suffered much damage in the recent quake due to the absence of effective land use and resettlement policies.
Landowners would not be able to build houses or industries nor they can choose a site for development beyond what is allocated after the act is enforced.
Similarly, the act will also prohibit habitats in a land which shows evidence of minerals and mines, forest, areas of cultural and historical importance, river and sites to risk-prone areas that are unsuitable for settlement. Slope lands, inundation and landslide-prone areas are to name a few.
The committee has divided the land into 12 zones for the optimum utilisation of land. Categorically they are Agricultural, Residential, commercial, industrial, mines and minerals, extraction of construction mineral sites, land of cultural and archaeological importance, rivers and rivulets, ponds and lakes, forest, public uses/open, risk-prone areas and others.
Even if the land is under some kind of ownership the act will discourage plotting and construction in the arable land. Landlords would not be able to build how they desire according to the new act.
Settlement of agricultural land and deforestation had been a major problem in the country which is a focus of attention for the creation of new Bill. It aims to minimize depletion of natural resources and encourage supervised settlement.
Legislative Parliament had sent the draft of the Act to the committee on November 18, 2014, for further discussion. The committee was asked to make recommendations on the draft.
The committee had decided to form a seven-member sub-committee to discuss complaints filed on the amendment Act. The sub-committee is also expected to study implementations of the recommendations. Amrit Kumar Bohara was named the chairman of the sub-committee. This would be the sixth amendment in Land Act since its establishment in the year 1964.
