Defence Ministry's 161 acre land in Gr Noida registered in its name after 70 yrs: Officials

The Defence Ministry's 161 acre land pegged worth Rs 400 crore in Greater Noida has been cleared of illegal occupation and registered in the government's name after 70 years, the Gautam Buddh Nagar administration said on Monday.

Land mafia had illegally occupied this property and constructed farmhouses on this land parcel, which falls in Nangli Sagpur village in Dadri tehsil of the district, the administration said in a statement.

In 1950, 482 acre land was acquired in Nangli Sagpur for establishment of a firing and bombing range but work related to the land's acquisition could not be completed in records of the revenue department then, Assistant Records Officer, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Rajnikant said.

''Land mafia had illegally occupied the land belonging to the Defence Ministry and constructed farmhouses on it. These farmhouses were also sold to people illegally without informing them about its background,'' the officer said.

The ministry had approached the district administration for cancellation of land rights in the name of these people who illegally occupied this land and restore registration in the name of the ministry, he said.

''In pursuance of the matter, names of 26 persons as owners of land plots on this 161 acre of land have been cancelled after an illegal occupation of 70 years and it has been registered in the name of the Defence Ministry, Government of India. The land is valued at Rs 400 crore at market price,'' the officer added.

With this, the ministry has also started work to occupy this land and the move will check illegal occupation of properties by land mafia in the region, he said.