அரசாணை (நிலை) எண் 186, நீர்நிலை புறம்போக்கு நிலங்களில் உள்ள ஆக்கிரமிப்புகளை அகற்றுதல்
The Tamil Nadu Government Revenue (நி.மு. 1(2)) Department issued Government Order (Ms.) No. 186 dated 29 April 2003, directing authorities to remove encroachments from waterbody and watercourse poramboke lands and prevent new encroachments. It reviews and reinforces the existing prohibition on regularising such encroachments, affecting occupiers, property buyers and officials dealing with land near ponds, tanks, streams, channels, rivers, catchments and other water routes.
What it governs
Government Order (Ms.) No. 186 dated 29 April 2003 applies to encroachments on waterbody and watercourse poramboke lands. These include ponds, small ponds, streams, channels, river poramboke lands, catchment areas and other water routes.
The Tamil Nadu Government Revenue (நி.மு. 1(2)) Department explains that these lands support drinking water, groundwater levels, drainage and public use. Encroachments can block rainwater from reaching tanks and ponds and may contribute to flooding in residential areas.
Who it affects
Government Order (Ms.) No. 186 affects anyone occupying, buying or dealing with land recorded as a waterbody, watercourse or catchment poramboke. It also directs District Collectors, District Revenue Officers, Revenue Department officials and Public Works Department officials to act against encroachments.
Revenue, Public Works, Highways, municipal and corporation officials are stated to have authority under the Land Encroachment Act, 1905 to remove encroachments after giving proper notice. Officials who fail to act at the proper time may face disciplinary action.
Key directions
Government Order (Ms.) No. 186 requires the following action:
- District Collectors must take immediate steps to remove encroachments from ponds, small ponds, streams, channels, rivers, catchments and other waterbody or watercourse poramboke lands.
- District Collectors and District Revenue Officers must strictly enforce the complete prohibition in Government Order (Ms.) No. 41 dated 20 January 1987 against proposals to regularise encroachments on waterbody and watercourse poramboke lands.
- District level committees created under Government Order (Ms.) No. 105 dated 7 March 2001 must review removal work and arrange for all such encroachments to be cleared within a fixed period.
- District Collectors must report action taken to the Government through the Special Commissioner and Commissioner of Land Administration.
- District Collectors and Public Works Department officials must remove future encroachments as soon as they arise.
- The Special Commissioner and Commissioner of Land Administration and the Public Works Department Chief Engineer must issue instructions, review district reports and send a factual status report to the Government within three months.
A buyer should therefore check whether land near a tank, pond, stream, channel or river is classified as poramboke or forms part of a water route or catchment. The document does not provide a route for regularising an encroachment on those lands.
This summary is generated from the source document to help you find what is relevant. The PDF above is authoritative. For advice on your own property, use LandLens One or speak to a qualified professional.
Common questions
Can an encroachment on a pond, stream or channel poramboke be regularised?
No regularisation proposal is permitted under the prohibition reinforced by Government Order (Ms.) No. 186 dated 29 April 2003. District Collectors and District Revenue Officers are directed to enforce that prohibition strictly.
Which types of land are covered by the removal directions?
The directions cover ponds, small ponds, streams, channels, river poramboke lands, waterbody and watercourse poramboke lands, and catchment areas.
Will notice be given before an encroachment is removed?
The document states that authorised Revenue, Public Works, Highways, municipal and corporation officials may remove encroachments after giving proper notice.
Who is responsible for preventing new waterbody encroachments?
District Collectors and Public Works Department officials are directed to remove new encroachments promptly. Officials who fail to take timely action may face disciplinary proceedings.
