Who are getting khas land for the landless?

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According to media reports, of the khas land distributed in Sylhet district, 47 per cent were given to undeserving persons, while 53 per cent have been kept pending. The locally influential groups influenced the distribution to benefit those close to them at the cost of the landless.
The situation in Sylhet is symbolic of the way khas land is being distributed in other areas of the country. But who will ensure that the landless and the absolute poor get the khas land meant for them?
The authorities should take the land given to the undeserving ones to redistribute them to the needy.
Moreover, the law should discourage the purchase of land by the influential from those in distress. Institutional lending to the rural poor must also increase. These steps and more will create conditions for reversing the process of landlessness.
Amin Chowdhury
Arambag, Dhaka