Why is Land Management Minister Pratibha Rawal in Jhapa? Key Priorities and Field Actions

Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration, Pratibha Rawal, has landed in Jhapa to conduct high-level administrative reviews and engage directly with victims of cooperative fraud and landless squatters.

The Minister convened an emergency coordination meeting featuring Jhapa’s Chief District Officer (CDO), chief survey officers, land revenue (Malpot) department heads, and Chief Administrative Officers across local municipalities.

Key Reasons Behind Minister Rawal’s Active Field Visit

Following a similar field assessment in Chitwan, Minister Rawal’s tour of Eastern Nepal centers on resolving systemic bottlenecks within land administration and cooperative oversight:

• Streamlining Land Revenue and Survey Coordination: Addressing service delays caused by administrative friction between central land revenue offices, survey departments, and municipal units.
• Resolving Landlessness and Informal Settlements: Meeting with the District Land Problem Resolution Committee and local residents to expedite the verification and issuance of land ownership certificates to landless squatters (Sukumbasi) and informal settlers.
• Direct Engagement with Cooperative Victims: Addressing aggrieved depositors whose funds were embezzled by troubled cooperatives, outlining the ministry’s asset recovery frameworks, and presenting ongoing legal interventions.
• Decentralization Roadmap: Briefing local officials on federal plans to transfer routine land administration services directly to local government units, ensuring municipal preparedness.

Administrative Impact

Minister Rawal’s hands-on approach reflects an operational strategy by the cabinet to transition policy execution from central offices to regional field units.

By directly gathering public grievances and aligning local bureaucracy with ministry targets, the visit aims to establish clear timelines for resolving land disputes and restoring public trust in local governance mechanisms.