By Maharashtra Act No.1 of 2016 w.e.f. 01/01/2016 Section 63 of the MTAL Act was amended to include a sub section and proviso. By the said amendment the bar for transfer of Agricultural land shall not apply to land situated within the limits of a Municipal Corporation or Municipal Council or within jurisdiction of Special Planning Authority or New Town Development Authority constituted under Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 (for short “MRTP”) and land allocated to residential, commercial, industrial or any other Non-Agricultural use in the draft of final Regional Plan or Town Planning Scheme.
By this amendment, the bar contained for transfer of agricultural lands was removed in the above cases.
Though the bar for transfer of agricultural lands came to be removed in the above cases, proviso’s are added putting conditions on such transfers. The first proviso provides that the land so transferred for Non-Agricultural use such as residential, commercial and industrial shall be put to such Non-Agricultural use within a period of five years from the date of transfer and necessary entry to that effect shall be made in the Record of Rights.
The second proviso provides that land transferred for any Non-Agricultural use permissible in the draft or final Development Plan or Regional Plan or Town Planning Scheme, if not put to Non-Agricultural use within the period of five years from the date of transfer, the Collector on payment of non-utilization charges @ of 2% of the market value calculated as per the Ready Reckoner [Annual Statement of Rates published under the Maharashtra Stamp (Determination of True Market Value of Property) Rules, 1995] grant a further extension of five years.
The third proviso provides that if the land is not to Non-Agricultural use as per the first and the second proviso, the Collector shall resume the land after giving one month notice to defaulting transferee. The land so resumed shall vest with the Government free from all encumbrances and shall first be offered to the original land holder by way of grant on the same tenure on which it was held by him before its transfer and at the same price at which it had been transferred by the original land owner.
The fourth proviso provides that if the original land owner fails to accept the offer to purchase the said land within the period of ninety days or having accepted the offer fails to deposit the purchase price within a further period of ninety days, the Collector shall auction the land.