Mission Basundhara 3.0 launched: Himanta Biswa Sarma vows to resolve all eligible land issues in coming years

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on February 27 asserted that all land ownership and documentation-related issues of eligible people in the state will be resolved in the coming years, as he launched the distribution of land pattas under Mission Basundhara 3.0 at Deuri Beel in Dhemaji district.

Mission Basundhara aims to streamline land governance by providing services such as land mutation, updating land records and doorstep delivery of land-related services through online platforms, eliminating the need for citizens to visit government offices. The chief minister also initiated the land settlement process in previously unsurveyed non-cadastral (NC) villages where surveys have been completed under the SVAMITVA scheme, a central initiative to establish clear ownership rights in rural areas.

According to an official release, land rights under the Forest Rights Act, 2006 were also granted to 538 individuals residing in the Subansiri and Jiadhal Reserved Forests during the programme.

Addressing the gathering, Sarma said that a total of 1,06,905 beneficiaries across Assam received land pattas on Friday, including 44,700 beneficiaries from Dhemaji district alone. He said Dhemaji was selected as the venue for the central distribution programme due to the high number of beneficiaries in the district.

The chief minister claimed that nearly 80 per cent of land-related issues in the state have been resolved over the past five years. The remaining 2–3 lakh cases, he said, would be addressed in the coming years to ensure that indigenous people do not continue to suffer due to land disputes. Emphasising eligibility, Sarma said land pattas have been issued only to Indian citizens and asserted that no Bangladeshi national would be allowed to occupy land in Assam.

Referring to tea garden workers, Sarma said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will formally launch the distribution of land pattas to eligible workers residing in garden lines on March 13.

Highlighting the background of Mission Basundhara and the SVAMITVA scheme, the chief minister said previous governments had failed to prioritise systematic land patta distribution, resulting in disorganised land records. He noted that the lack of proper documentation had prevented many from availing bank loans, while enabling illegal occupation of land by others.

Sarma said Mission Basundhara was launched soon after his government assumed office to comprehensively address land-related problems. He added that with Assam having nearly 78,000 square kilometres of land, resolving all land issues instantly is not feasible, but the ongoing process would eventually reach completion.

Mission Basundhara 1.0, launched in 2021, addressed issues such as conversion of annual pattas to periodic pattas, correction of land record errors and reclassification of land categories, benefitting around 5.82 lakh families. Mission Basundhara 2.0 focused on granting land rights to indigenous people living on government land for generations, benefitting 2.29 lakh families, of whom 85 per cent belonged to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and OBC communities.

Under the initiative, land pattas have also been granted to 8,406 religious institutions, 2,213 clubs and cultural organisations, and 13,637 educational institutions across Assam. Of the 903 NC villages in the state, surveys have been completed in 769 villages. Applications have been received from 1,06,372 families across 12 districts, with 30,000 families already granted pattas, while the remaining cases are being processed.

The chief minister said that since the launch of Mission Basundhara, land-related grievances of nearly 10 lakh families have been resolved. He added that forthcoming phases, Mission Basundhara 4.0 and 5.0, will address land reclassification and grant pattas to eligible non-tribal residents of forest villages.