KULBIR SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ON September 26, 1969, the State Government issued a Notification under Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 189 Kanals and 18 Marlas of land belonging to the petitioners was acquired for the purpose of "providing Hume Pipe, Rising main and Sewage.....". The petitioners allege that in the year 1995, the land was leased out by the State Government to the Municipal Corporation, Jalandhar. Thereafter, on February 6, 2000, a news item appeared in the press, which disclosed that an ultra Modern Diary Complex was being raised at that spot. Applications for allotment of sites have been invited through a notice in the press, which has appeared in the daily Tribune on February 6, 2000. The petitioners pray that since the land is not being used for the purpose for which it had been initially acquired, it should be restored to the owners.

(2.) A written statement has been filed on behalf of respondent No. 2. It has been averred that the land was being used for the purpose for which it had been initially acquired. It was a low lying area. With the help of sewage water the land had become cultivable. Thereafter the Municipal Corporation provided a system of underground sewerage. The land has, thus, become available for a different use and, therefore, the diary project is being set up.

(3.) ADMITTEDLY , the petitioners had been paid the compensation. The land was used for the purpose for which it had been initially acquired. With the passage of time, the city developed all around the land. Using it for sewage purposes at this stage would create a health problem. Thus, the Municipal Corporation has provided an underground sewerage facility. Resultantly, the land is now available for a different public use. In this situation, it cannot be said that the action of the respondents is illegal or unfair.