Three land-related draft laws placed before the Parliament

Staff Reporter :
Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury has placed three land-related draft laws in the form of bills including the ‘Land Crime Prevention and Redress Act, 2023’ before the Jatiya Sangshad on Monday.

The other two draft laws are the ‘Land Reform Act, 2023’ and the ‘Balumohal (sand quarry) and Soil Management (Amendment) Act, 2023.’

The 24th session of the 11th National Parliament started on Sunday.
The main objective of the ‘Land Crime Prevention and Redress Act, 2023,’ is to identify many land-related crimes and bring them under the category of criminal offenses.

The law provides for punishment for those crimes.

It would help the citizens to ensure their right to uninterrupted use and possession of the land they own.

The law specifies the areas of land fraudulence and forgery, as well as prevention, suppression, and, if necessary, redress.

Violation of this law is punishable with a fine and imprisonment or both.

On the other hand, the main aspects of the Land Reform Act, 2023, include the provision of a maximum limit of 60 bighas for individual agricultural land ownership.

However, the law has been relaxed in some cases. The law will be relaxed in the case of the establishment of tea, coffee, and rubber plantations, manufacturing activities in industrial establishments or factories, and export-oriented industries through cooperative societies.

The Act also provides for the rights of habitat, lease agreements, and a fair share of crop production.

The Minister also placed the Sand Quarry and Soil Management (Amendment) Act, 2023, which main objectives include the provision to prohibit the extraction of sand or soil from any crop land.

Apart from this, sand mining has also been banned from places where the navigability of the river can be damaged. Illegal sand mining machines can be seized.

Under this law, if there is any damage to the road due to sand transportation, the leasing authority will have to repair the road again.

Apart from the aforementioned three laws, the Ministry of Land is working on finalising the draft of the ‘Land Ownership and Uses Act, 2023,’ aimed to protect the agricultural land, capping the maximum limit of non-agricultural land, ensuring food security, and reducing the harmful effects of climate change.