Over 17 lakh applications seeking grant of land remain pending or rejected in Karnataka

The strongest opposition in Malnad region to the recommendations of the K. Kasturirangan report on the Western Ghats has always come from applicants seeking grant of land for cultivation.

The strongest opposition in Malnad region to the recommendations of the K. Kasturirangan report on the Western Ghats has always come from applicants seeking grant of land for cultivation. Their worry is that the State government’s resolution in the legislature, opposing the report’s recommendations, does not really address their core concerns.

As of now, over 17.15 lakh applications seeking grant of land are pending/rejected in the State. They include 2.78 lakh applications filed under the Forest Rights Act and about 14.36 lakh under the Land Revenue Act.

At the regional review conference of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2026, held in Bengaluru last month, officers stated that 2,95,176 applications had been received for land grant under the Act. Of these, only 16,700 forest rights titles have been distributed and 15,553 remain under verification. A majority of the applications have been rejected at the primary level as the applicants failed to prove their presence on the land for 75 years, as mandated by the law.

Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, during his public meetings on the Kasturirangan report, said that he would soon adopt a resolution in the legislature to reduce the required number of years to 25 and send it to the Centre for incorporation into law.

On the other hand, for several years, lakhs of farmers — bagair-hukum cultivators — have been waiting for the grant of land after filing applications in Forms 50, 53 and 57 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act. In reply to a question raised during the legislature session, Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister G. Parameshwara stated that 14,37,087 applications had been submitted so far, of which Deputy Commissioners had rejected 6,94,750. As many as 7,42,085 applications are pending. The number of saguvali chits issued so far is only 252.

In districts including Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu and Belagavi, no saguvali chit has been distributed in the last three years, as per the Minister’s reply.

Among the reasons for the large-scale rejection of applications is that the land claimed to be under cultivation is forest land — either proposed forest, deemed forest or reserved forest. Interestingly, even lands granted as early as during the time of the Mysuru kings are now under question on the ground that they fall under the forest category.

The draft notification proposes declaring over 20,668 sq. km of area across the Western Ghats in the State as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA). Though Karnataka’s resolution has opposed this, those who have sought cultivation rights have reservations about part of the resolution that suggests the ESA be limited only to notified forest areas.

“If the notified area is declared an ESA, what would be the fate of people who have applied for grant of land under the Forest Rights Act or Land Revenue Act?” asked Ti. Na. Srinivasa, a farmers’ activist.

Former Minister and senior Congress leader Kimmane Ratnakar asked, “If the ESA comes into effect, what about not just bagair-hukum cultivators but those who have sought pieces of land to build shelters?” He is pushing for an amendment to the central Forest (Conservation) Act that would empower State governments to sanction small residential plots to long-settled families, though not for large projects such as dams.

In Karimane village of Hosanagara taluk, most of the settlement, including the gram panchayat office, falls inside the proposed forest area and lacks formal title. In Uralagallu in Sagar taluk, residents must cross nearly 10 km of forest to reach a proper road. In N.R. Pura taluk of Chikkamagaluru district, residents of the Marathi camp have long demanded a road to neighbouring Byrapura, home to the local school — a route where schoolchildren recently spotted a leopard.

Villagers fear that if the ESA is limited to notified forest areas, they will continue to be denied basic facilities such as roads and electricity. “We are struggling to get basic amenities under the existing rules. What will be our plight if the ESA also comes into effect?” asked Nagaraj Salkod of Uralagallu village.