Patna: Revenue and land reforms minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal on Monday appealed to landless families not to travel to Patna to apply for residential plots under the state govt’s housing land scheme, saying applications can be submitted online, at circle offices or through special camps being organised at the panchayat level.The appeal comes amid reports that hundreds of landless people, including women, have been reaching the state capital after being allegedly misled into believing that applications under ‘Abhiyan Basera-2’ could only be submitted in Patna.Jaiswal said the department had received information that some individuals and organisations were spreading misinformation and encouraging beneficiaries to visit Patna for submitting applications. He warned that legal action would be taken against anyone found deliberately misleading applicants.Under the ongoing Abhiyan Basera-2, eligible landless families belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes and Extremely Backward Classes can apply for land for housing purposes.The minister said applications could be submitted through the BiharBhumi portal, at the concerned circle office or at special camps being organised in panchayats. Four-day camps will be held at Panchayat Sarkar Bhawans to enable beneficiaries to apply for residential land closer to their homes.CM Samrat Choudhary has also appealed to landless families not to travel to Patna for submitting applications. In a post on X, he said special camps would be organised in all panchayats from Sept 22 to ensure that every landless family in Bihar gets a homestead plot.Patna DM Kundan Kumar said help desks had been set up at all circle and panchayat offices in the district to assist applicants and issue acknowledgement receipts after submission of applications.Jaiswal said facilitating landless families was a priority for the department and urged beneficiaries not to fall prey to misinformation. The department has also made it mandatory for circle offices to accept applications and provide acknowledgement receipts.Revenue and land reforms department secretary Jai Singh has directed circle officers to ensure compliance, warning that officials who fail to accept applications or issue receipts will be held accountable.
