The term “Government estates” is used to mean estates under the direct management of Government whether these are the property of Government or are the estates of private individuals brought under direct management of Government. It may also mean any land, which is the property of Government and as such would include estates owned by Government which have been let in farm and leased for periods and also the waste lands but would not include lands belonging to other departments of Government, e.g. roadside lands, so long as they are not relinquished by the department concerned to the Collector for management. This Manual unless it so appears from the context, deals with the principles, policy and procedure for khas management of estates under the direct management of Government.
Estates may be acquired by Government in the following ways-
(1) Purchase at revenue sale (Section 58 of Act XI of 1859).
(2) Purchase by private contract.
(3) Escheat in default of legal heirs.
(4) Forfeiture to Government for certain offences against the State.
(5) Resumption of island chars (Regulation XI of 1825).
(6) Acquisition for public purposes.
(7) Accretion to estates, the property of Government.
(8) Resumption of lands hitherto held by zamindars for the performance of police duties when they are relieved of those duties.
Policy of Government regarding sales
It is the declared policy of Government that as many Government estates should be retained under direct management as possible. Town estates whether small or large should always be kept under khas management. This will enable Revenue Authorities to obtain continuous practical information which it is very difficult to obtain in any other way, of the progress of agriculture, of the extent to which the productive powers of the land are being developed, and of the increased money value of the produce.
No estate which is contiguous to the capital town of a district is to be sold. Other estates which can be conveniently managed by Government officers or in which, though they cannot conveniently be managed direct, the interests of Government would be better served by a long lease rather than a sale, should not be sold. Estates leased for a term of which a long period has yet to run and those of which a survey and settlement have not been made and a record-of-rights has not been prepared should not also be sold:
Provided that when the estates are very small and a survey has once been made of them or a fractional share of an undivided estate is in question, survey and preparation of record-of-rights with the previous sanction of the Board of Revenue can be dispensed with. Sale should be resorted to only when the estates do not fulfil the conditions specified in Rules 5 and 6 above. The boundaries of fisheries are to be carefully defined and plans of them prepared before they are sold.
