Gandhinagar: In a key reform aimed at simplifying land laws, the Gujarat government has given in-principle approval to amend the decades-old Tukada Act, 1947, a move expected to benefit lakhs of farmers and landholders across the state.

Announcing the decision, state spokesperson and minister Jitu Vaghani said that, for the first time since Independence, comprehensive changes have been proposed to address long-standing complexities in land transactions. The amendments will come into force after receiving approval from the Governor and the President.

As per the proposed changes, all violations of the Tukada Act committed since 1948 will be regularised without any penalty. This is expected to provide relief to thousands of landholders and clear long-pending cases in revenue courts.

The minister said that under the existing system, even after paying penalties, several transactions remained legally disputed. The new amendment will regularise such transactions and provide clear land titles to bona fide buyers.

The government has also introduced a uniform minimum land parcel size of 10 gunthas across rural Gujarat, replacing varying criteria based on land types such as irrigated, non-irrigated, and horticultural land. The minister said this step will simplify regulations and improve agricultural viability.

In a significant move, all urban areas, including municipal corporations, municipalities, and urban development authority regions, will be exempted from the provisions of the Tukada Act. This is expected to accelerate non-agricultural (NA) permissions, construction activities, and property transactions in cities.

The minister added that these recommendations have been accepted after an in-depth study by a committee formed under the chairmanship of Settlement Commissioner Shri Bijal Shah.

The government said the reform will reduce disputes, curb unnecessary litigation, and save time and money for citizens, while promoting economic growth and ease of land transactions in the state. DeshGujarat