State revenue minister defends allotment of salt pan land to Savarkar trust

Mumbai: State revenue minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil defended the direct allotment of 6,320 square metres of prime Wadala salt pan land to the Veer Savarkar Charitable Trust as a special case.The cabinet took the decision to allot the plot on Friday, overruling the state revenue and finance departments, which had said that the allotment should be done as per the 2019 govt rules, in which vacant plots should first be advertised to invite other bidders."The allotment has been done according to the policy. This came before the cabinet because the value of the land is more than Rs 1 crore, and the cabinet has taken the decision," Vikhe Patil told TOI on Saturday.He also said that the plot, which is valued at Rs 74.5 crore, was not being allotted free of cost. "The Savarkar trust will have to pay according to the govt policy for allotting land to educational institutions," he added.Meanwhile, BJP MLA Tamil Selvan, who had applied for the allotment, claimed that the plot would only be used to set up a primary and secondary school and not for commercial purposes. "There is no school in the area, and children are suffering. I have been pursuing this issue for eight years. Finally, the Savarkar trust showed interest, and I pursued the allotment," he said.Only some institutions qualify for "direct allotment" of govt land according to the state's 2019 policy. These are renowned organisations, those involved in research activities, those working for the handicapped or financially weak, and educational institutions with domain experience.In the proposal, the state revenue department said there do not seem to be too many details about the Veer Savarkar Charitable Trust's work in the field of education or any special work done by the institution in this field. It also said that no proposal had been submitted about the trust's plans to set up a primary and secondary institution. The revenue department also stated that the trust did not qualify on the grounds of being a renowned institution.The revenue department said the Savarkar trust did not fulfil conditions for direct allotment, and the 2019 rules, which require the plot to be advertised to invite other bidders, should be followed. However, the cabinet overruled the department and allotted the plot directly.Just 10 days ago, the cabinet directly allotted 5 hectares of land in Nagpur's Koradi area for educational purposes to a trust headed by state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, overriding objections raised by the state finance and revenue departments.The opposition has accused the Mahayuti govt of giving away public land. "The govt seems to have a major plan to give away public land," said Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat. State Congress chief Nana Patole said, "The govt is looting the state."
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