M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, June 24: A senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader in Jharkhand, Binu Singh, has warned the state government if the increased holding tax based on the circle rate is not rolled back, days are not far off when the jobless youths in the household may again turn towards Naxalism in Palamu.
The NCP leader said the youths find their parents under extreme pressure on account of the increased holding tax and having no source of income at hand, there is every possibility that these youths may again pick up the guns.
Binu Singh said it is true that Naxalism has taken a back seat in Palamu and Jharkhand but the way this state government is charging people for holding tax is extremely painful. Even wasteland or arid land where there grows no crop is now being taxed at much a higher rate.
He referred to plots of land at Singra where the holding tax is abnormally high. He said in the name of the expansion of the Medinirai municipal corporation area rural areas close to the town have been incorporated into the corporation area as a result holding tax is very much applicable here.
The NCP leader said he has a property at Singra away from the NH 75 for which he has paid Rs 1,00,000 as holding tax.
He has urged the state government to withdraw the increased holding tax and give relief to poor households.
Surya Sonal Singh, another face of the NCP here, said the NCP has one MLA in Jharkhand Kamlesh Kumar Singh who represents Palamu’s Hussainabad constituency.
“We support the state government on issues which are people friendly but where we find that the decision or policy of the state government is anti-people we raise our voice for the cause of the common people,” said Surya Sonal Singh.
Binu Singh was very critical of the lease issue of the Khas Mahal land. He said its Salami is too exorbitant and a common family living in the Khas Mahal land can’t afford to pay for the renewal of the lease of the Khas Mahal land.
Banks refuse loans on the expired lease of the Khas Mahal land where is built the house as the land paper is presented in the bank as collateral security.
Binu Singh said it is difficult to sell Khas Mahal land as there is a whole lot of procedure like lease, renewal of lease permission from the DC etc.
The NCP leader said some people have Khas Mahal land but are unable to start any business on it just because of the issue of the expired lease.
The issue of the acute crisis of sand came up in this NCP press briefing where a recognised farmer explained how curb on the sale of the sand has affected Awas Yojna of the individuals.
The farmer said there is no licensed dump of sand in Hussainabad and as such, there is no stockist of it. June 1 to 15 was a fortnight where the administration did only two things. It brought down unlicensed brick kilns and then it seized tractors with sand-loaded trolleys all in the name of the drive against illegal mining little knowing that the crisis of sand and brick will tell upon the pace of the development.
