A cabinet meeting today approved the formation of a high level committee to look into land pooling issues of the KathmanduTarai fast track.

According to the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works (MoPPW), the fourmember committee headed by former secretary Chet Nath Ghimire includes Punya Prasad Oli, former director general of Department of Survey; Binod Gauchan, under-secretary at the Ministry of law and Justice and Saroj Man Shrestha, chief of the fast track project. “The committee will look into problems of land pooling and make recommendations to the government,” said Tulasi Prasad Sitaula, Joint Secretary at MoPPW.“It will submit its report within three months,” he said.The track opening of the project began last year due to high demand from locals.

However, land pooling is yet to be done. “The committee will finalise the land area to be pooled,” said Sitaula. The committee will also probe compensation for people who have encroached land inside the project area. “The government has started the land purchase process.” The 75-km fast track begins from Khokana of Lalitpur and ends in Nijgadh of Bara district.

source: The Himalayan Times (2011),"Land pooling panel formed",The Himalayan Times, 18 Jan 2011