Gujarat High Court Orders Kutch Collector To Submit Affidavit Addressing Concerns Over Relocation Of 'Gauchar' Land For Airstrip Development

On Tuesday, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) concerning the allocation of Gauchar land for an airstrip development in the Kutch district, the Gujarat High Court directed the Collector of Kutch to file a personal affidavit to address concerns raised by the Kathda and Mandvi village panchayats about the alternative Gauchar lands being 4-6 kilometres away from the existing ones, which could potentially cause hardship to the villagers and their cattle.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Pranav Trivedi heard the case.

The PIL was brought before the court by the Kathda Gram Panchayat Taluka Mandvi Kachchh and Vijay Kumar Karsanbhai Gadhvi, a resident of Mandvi village. The petitioners argued that the Gauchar lands from the villages of Kathda and Mandvi, identified as revenue survey numbers 357 and 375 respectively, are being taken for the airstrip development. The total area of the Gauchar lands involved amounts to 22,53,200 square meters.

Senior counsel representing the petitioners clarified that while the petitioners support the development of the airstrip, they are concerned about the adverse impact of relocating the Gauchar lands. Specifically, the alternative Gauchar lands provided to the panchayats of Kathda and Mandvi are situated 4-6 kilometres away from the existing lands.

The new lands, located in different villages including Layja Nana, would require villagers and their cattle to travel significant distances, which could lead to considerable hardship given the region's extreme weather conditions.

The petitioners' counsel contended that the relocation did not adhere to the government resolution dated April 1, 2015, which stipulates that alternative Gauchar lands should be as close as possible to the original lands to minimize inconvenience. Section 108(4) of the Gujarat Panchayat Act, 1993, was referenced to support the claim that the state government has the authority to resume lands vested with a panchayat but must follow the prescribed procedures.

The Court noted, "As per the govt resolution, it is the duty of the Collector to identify alternative Gauchar land which must be nearest to the existing Gauchar land so as to replenish the same for the height of the residents of the concerned panchayat."

In response to the arguments made, the Court ordered, "Taking note of these arguments, on the request made by Mr. GH Virk, the ld Government Pleader, the matter is posted on 30.08.2024 directing the Collector, Kutch to file his personal Affidavit to answer the contentions of the petitioners that the new Gauchar land given to the panchayats in leu of the existing Gauchar land are at a distance of 4-6 kms, which will cause serious prejudice to both the villagers and their cattle, because of the peculiar weather conditions which cause extreme hardship to the people of Kutch region."

Additionally, the court directed that notice of the writ petition be served to the counsel representing Mandvi Municipality, who was instructed to seek and provide instructions by the next hearing.