SRINAGAR: Official data has revealed that more than 17 lakh kanals of government land are currently under encroachment across Jammu and Kashmir, with the Jammu division accounting for the highest share of illegally occupied state land.According to figures placed in the public domain, nearly 17,27,247 kanals of encroached state land have been identified and corresponding illegal entries expunged from revenue records across the Union Territory.The Jammu division alone accounts for nearly 14 lakh kanals of encroached land, while the Kashmir division records over 3.27 lakh kanals.Among all districts, Rajouri has emerged as the worst-affected area with over 2.73 lakh kanals of state land allegedly under illegal occupation. Reasi follows with more than 2.26 lakh kanals, while Ramban records nearly 1.74 lakh kanals under encroachment.Jammu district has over 1.45 lakh kanals of encroached government land, followed by Kathua, Udhampur and Poonch, each reporting more than one lakh kanals.In Kashmir division, Baramulla tops the list with over 81,000 kanals of encroached land, followed by Kupwara and Pulwama.Other districts including Anantnag, Budgam, Bandipora, Shopian, Ganderbal, Kulgam and Srinagar also reported significant encroachment figures.The data highlights a major regional contrast, with Jammu district alone recording more than ten times the encroached land compared to Srinagar district.The figures were disclosed in response to a query seeking details about encroachment on state land, central government land and Jammu Development Authority (JDA) properties, along with action taken for retrieval and regularisation.Authorities stated that illegal entries linked to encroached government land have been removed from revenue records in several districts as part of ongoing anti-encroachment measures across Jammu and Kashmir.
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