Land handover: Army pleads helplessness

Land handover: Army pleads helplessness
Friday April 13 2007 13:08 IST

BANGALORE: The defence forces on Wednesday expressed their difficulty in handing over large tracts of land to the State Government for development.

Speaking at the annual civil-military liaison conference here, General Officer Commanding of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala, Major General B.Sivasankar, said that the armed forces were facing a drastic increase in the requirement for land for infrastructure, training and administrative purposes, owing to modernisation of the forces.

‘‘The constraint of land on infrastructure development, especially in a metro, is well understood and it shall be our endeavour to assist the state governments as best as possible.

But there is a shortage of land even after making the best use of what is available to us, including tracts in the hinterland,’ he said.

Major General Sivasankar appealed to the Karnataka Government to appreciate their difficulties in surrendering large tracts of land, especially where the Ministry of Defence had not issued necessary directions.

Incidentally, the Army has, over the past year, begun building on several of its properties in Bangalore city, which had been vacant so far.

Major General Sivasankar sought the state’s assistance in rehabilitation of war veterans and resolving problems related to serving soldiers expeditiously. A number of suicides and fratricides in the Army have been attributed to stress on the family front, he said.

In reply, Home Minister M P Prakash, who inaugurated the conference, said that the government had initiated honorariums for the welfare war veterans and widows.

‘‘We also look forward to an upward revision the number of seats reserved for wards of armed forces personnel and veterans in professional educational institutions,’’ Major General Sivasankar said.

The conference was attended by Chief Secretary P B Mahishi, Home Secretary Vatsala Watsa, DGP R Srinivasan, Bangalore City Police Commissioner N Achutha Rao and senior military officers.