Tamil Nadu Information Commission orders probe into missing land records 

Tamil Nadu Information Commission orders investigation into missing land records, directs inquiry by District Revenue Officer.

The Tamil Nadu Information Commission has ordered an investigation into the non-availability of crucial land records pertaining to resurvey and resettlement of certain survey numbers in the erstwhile Madras and Mylapore villages.

Passing orders on an appeal filed by M.R. Magesh, of Teynampet, State Information Commissioner R. Priyakumar directed the District Revenue Officer (DRO), Chennai, to conduct an inquiry with the authorities concerned and submit a report to the Commission.

In his petition, filed under the Right to Information Act, 2005, Mr. Magesh had called for copies of the field measurement sketch, and resurvey and resettlement documents approved by the then Governor in Council and Inam Commissioner as regards Old Survey Number 1050 of Madras and Mylapore villages. He had also requested field measurement sketches of six other survey numbers in the two villages.

The Public Information Officer (PIO) said that since the documents pertained to the period from 1895 to 1987, the records were not maintained in his office. The orders of the Governor in Council, Inam Commissioner and others, passed under the purview of the Tamil Nadu Estate (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948, and the Tamil Nadu Minor Inams (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, were also not available on record.

Not satisfied with the response of the PIO and the First Appellate Authority, the petitioner filed an appeal before the TNIC.

After hearing both sides, Mr. Priyakumar said the response of the public authority that the documents were not being maintained in the State archives was not acceptable. He directed the DRO to conduct an inquiry with all the Revenue Department officials who were either custodians or were relevant to the information sought by the petitioner, and submit the report to the TNIC by October 23.