Aurangabad, July 21:
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI, Aurangabad Circle) heaved a sigh of relief after the Land Record Office (LRO) undertook the task of demarcating 84 acres of land, officially registered in the name of the city’s monument Bibi ka Maqbara, from Wednesday. However, the surveying team of LRO left the controversial area and resumed their work after a few neighbouring residents opposed the action on Thursday morning.
The LRO team comprising officers including Hemant Auti and Shaikh Aref started the demarcation, in presence of the Superintendent (Land Record) Shalini Bidarkar, on July 20.
ASI officials Sanjay Rohankar and Ashok Ture were also present on the occasion. The team is conducting the demarcation with the help of advanced technology, said the sources.
It may be noted that after 60 years (since 1951), the ASI (Aurangabad Circle) succeeded in officially obtaining the property registration (PR) card bearing CTS No. 2033, on December 24, 2021. The PR card mentions notification of 3.39 lakh square metres of land (registered in the name of the then South West Circle) including 84 acres of land of Bibi ka Maqbara. Getting a PR card was not an easy task, but the superintending archaeologist (Aurangabad Circle) Milan Kumar Chauley initiated and searched for all the old documents required to get the official PR Card. So far, there was no official record of the heritage site and the total area of land in its name.
ASI plans
To protect its land, the circle authorities had corresponded with various departments like district administration, LRO, Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) for demarcation of 84 acres of land, removal of encroachments existing surrounding the heritage etc. The ASI also presented its say strongly in the courts and succeeded in vacating the illegal possessions with the help of AMC around the Maqbara. The ASI plans include demarcation of its total land, removing encroachments and constructing a compound wall to protect its boundaries, said the ASI sources.
Objection to LRO team
According to ASI sources, “The two neighbouring residents (who according to ASI are encroachers upon their land and dispute is underway) arrived at the Maqbara, separately, on Thursday. They interacted with the LRO surveyors, as a result, the team leaving the controversial land resumed their survey, in the morning. The team surveyed the area en route to Aurangabad Caves and behind the Maqbara got completed today and the survey of the front portion of heritage structure will resume tomorrow.”