Staff Reporter: Land Minister Narayon Chandra Chanda said, Farmland is not merely a place for crop production; agricultural land is the lifeblood of our economy and the bedrock of our food security.

Land Minister said, this while presiding over an inter-ministerial meeting on the finalization of the Land Zoning and Protection Act, 2024 (draft) held at the conference room of the ministry on Thursday.

Land Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman, Chairman of Land Reform Board Md Abdus Sabur Mondal, Chairman of Land Appeal Board AKM Shamimul Haque Siddique, and Director General of Land Record and Survey Department Anis Mahmud were present at the event. Md Khalilur Rahman, joint secretary of the Law wing of the Ministry of Land, presented the draft law.

The land minister said the prime minister felt the need to enact strong laws to protect this invaluable resource such as land for the challenges posed by climate change and rapid industrialization urbanization. For this, the Ministry of Land has taken a plan to enact the Land Zoning and Protection Act, 2024 under her direction. This law will play an important role in implementing Smart Bangladesh, achieving sustainable development goals of Bangladesh, and facilitating long-term delta planning.

Land minister said the purpose of this law is to prevent unplanned urbanization, housing, construction of houses, development activities, and construction of industries and roads; To protect the environment and continue the production of food crops while maintaining the class or nature of the land; To ensure planned and optimum use of land including protection of agricultural land, forests, hillocks, hills, rivers, canals, and water bodies; And ensuring the use of land and ensuring state discipline in the best use of land through planned zoning.

The minister reiterated the government's unwavering commitment to ensure sustainable land management and equitable use of land resources. Addressing the representatives of different ministries present at the time, the minister said, we are almost close to finalizing the draft of a landmark law. Necessary updates have already been made in the initial draft based on open opinions.

Narayon Chandra Chanda said, that as the law will have a positive impact on almost all sectors directly or indirectly, we are seeking valuable opinions from different ministries concerned. I hope that the draft of the final law based on the feedback received from all will play a role in encouraging agricultural prosperity, strengthening food security, and protecting our environment, the minister added.

Land Secretary said key provisions of the Act include the meticulous categorization of land into distinct zones based on geographical characteristics, topography, and intended use. Through the utilization of cutting-edge technologies and on-the-ground assessments, the government is developing digital land zoning maps, providing a clear blueprint for planned development across the nation. Name of the ongoing project under the Ministry of Land concerned with the preparation of Land Zoning Map 'Mouza and plot-based National Digital Land Zoning Project'.

The secretary said 10 classifications for land zoning have been proposed in the draft law based on the opinions of all including experts. These are arable, residential, commercial, wetlands, rivers, forests, hills, roads, industrial and religious places.

The Land Secretary requested the representatives of all the ministries concerned to send the final opinion on the Land Zoning and Protection Act, 2024 (draft) within this month considering all the issues and in line with the basic 'spirit' of the proposed law.

At this time, the Land Secretary requested the representatives of all the concerned ministries to submit their final opinions in writing on the Land Zoning and Protection Act, 2024 (draft) within this month, addressing all pertinent issues and aligning with the fundamental 'spirit' of the proposed law.

Among others, the Chief Technical Expert of the National Land Zoning Project Former Senior Secretary Dilawar Bakht, Land Policy Specialist former Grade-1 Officer Md. Hannan Mia and officials concerned with the Ministry of Land and its affiliated offices, agencies, and projects were present at the meeting. Representatives from more than 22 ministries and divisions including the Cabinet Division were present at the meeting.

Biniyougbarta.SAM//