New set of land records formalized for Ravangla

GANGTOK, 14 March: Ravangla has finally got a new set of land records. The old land records of Ravangla bazaar and its surrounding areas, prepared in 1976-1983 and dating much further back to the time of the Chogyals and when the Ralong monastery ‘owned’ the bazaar and surrounding areas, have now been notified by the state government to have ceased to be in operation. New land records prepared by the Land Revenue Department from the year 2006 to 2010 have now replaced the old records. In the process, all persons allotted land by the monastery have now had their respective land holdings regularized.
The preparation and implementation of new records for Ravangla and surrounding areas was very much needed and was acutely felt to resolve the impression of dual ownership or authority over the area by both the Ralong gumpa as well as the State administration.
In fact, it has only been in recent years that the administration of the area has come gradually and completely into the hands of the state administration from the gumpa which earlier exercised control over the area and in the allotment of plots. The monastery even collected taxes etc from the people which has now passed on to the State administration but with the monastery receiving 50% of the revenue thus collected and freed from utilizing it for development of civic amenities.
The gumpa committee often allotted plots to individuals for which there were no proper records. What further complicated the situation was that some of these lands happened to be forest lands.
The practice of allotting lands to individuals along with the practice of collecting taxes posed the question of relevancy of the administration which was providing all the utilities as well was engaged in the development of the area. While the state has taken over these functions and powers, absence of proper land records posed problems and also the potential to spark disputes among land owners.
At the same time, it was also important that the lands allotted by the monastery be recognized and regularized; this, especially with the formation of municipal bodies. All this necessitated the preparation of new land records. The process of preparing the new records took a number of years and required extensive surveys etc.
The process completed, the monastery can no longer allot plots and the boundaries of the Ravangla bazaar have also been redefined with the Settlement area and Rabong block forming the eastern boundary; Berfung and Deythang blocks forming the western boundary; Seleley Slip area forming the northern boundary and Berfung block and Tea Garden block forming the southern boundary.
Incidentally, the entire land records of Sikkim and which are adhered to by the government were prepared between 1976-1983 and there is a proposal currently for the modernization of the state’s land records.

…no such luck for Gyalshing
GANGTOK, 14 March: While the state government has been able in reconciling and regularizing the land records and holdings of Ravangla bazaar it has not been able to do the same with Gyalshing and Rabdentse. Gyalshing bazaar and surrounding areas also pose the same problem and complications as Ravangla did for the administration. While in the case of Ravangla bazaar, it was the Ralong Monastery which earlier exercised authority, in the case of Gyalshing and Rabdentse, it is the Pemayangste monastery. This is a historical situation carried over from the pre-merger days, and while the State government has attempted to resolve the situation and set the records straight for Rabdentse and Gyalshing on similar lines as Ravangla, the gumpa committee at Pemayangtse monastery has not agreed to the move and preferred to continue its rights on the area. The preparation of new land records in Ravangla was possible because the monastery there had agreed to the proposal of the government. With the Pemayangste monastery not agreeing with the government’s intention at preparing new lands records there could be complications later on.