Ballari: Despite a state-wide awareness campaign and a six-year-long window, 265 primary schools and 18 high schools in Karnataka’s Vijayanagara district have still not completed property registration. The delay has sparked concerns over rising land encroachment and legal disputes with donor families.
In response to repeated incidents of government school land being encroached upon or contested by heirs of donors, the Karnataka government launched a three-month registration drive last October. However, progress has been slow. Of the 990 schools in the district, only 362 primary and 83 high schools have completed the registration process.
Technical hurdles and bureaucratic delays are being cited as key reasons for the backlog. In Ballari East, five schools are still awaiting the tahsildar’s approval, while in Kurugodu taluk, properties under the city corporation, gram panchayat, and municipality remain pending. Kampli has two schools awaiting the deputy commissioner’s nod, four Sandur schools face issues due to unregistered donation deeds, and in Siruguppa, municipal clearance is awaited for four schools.
District officials, including M S Diwakar, have repeatedly raised the issue during DISHA and KDP meetings. The delay has resulted in multiple donor families seeking the return of land or compensation. According to DDPI Umadevi B, many of these schools don’t even have official accounts in place, and several have already seen their land encroached upon.
She stressed that headmasters and Block Education Officers must act swiftly, noting that earlier action could have prevented the current situation.