Hyderabad: Citizens under GHMC wary of assets survey questionnaire

Hyderabad: The residents under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits jurisdiction have woken up to a rude shock in the form of a volley of questions eliciting their personal details from civic body teams tasked with procuring property details for Dharani portal.

Social media has been flooded with complaints on the Non-Agricultural Property updation for Pattadar passbook (NAP-PPB) survey. In several areas, especially in Rajendranagar, angry residents forced the GHMC teams to return as they refused to share information. M Satish, advocate says, "The survey is seeking sensitive information of an individual and also expecting to link aadhar with land ownership, which is not acceptable by all the citizens, not everyone will be willing to present it to the government as many of joint families still maintain the property.

In several instances, ownership details are hidden for the better relationship among family members. In another scenario, our Supreme court judgement on Aadhaar card shows clear restrictions of its use in linking with any welfare systems and its totally unlawful to link Aadhaar with land records."

The column of specifying one's caste is also being questioned by netizens. Taking to twitter Kalyani Sharma asks: "Does the portal need to be updated with all fam member or owner & spouse? Every mem aadhar or owner? Thanks for asking the #caste (sic)."

The survey is being conducted using an app called TS-NPB. The document collection mandates that officials link the Aadhaar number with the Pattadar passbook number. If the property holder does not have the Pattadar passbook, then the official has to pull the Aadhaar number from other sources of identity cards such as ESI card, food security card, Jandhan account, Aasara pension, Voter id and others. If there is any joint property owner, then the bank details of the joint account holder must also be recorded in the application.

Allaying fears, A Ramesh, Deputy Commissioner, Yousufguda, GHMC says, ""Nothing to worry so much about details of property we are having a vast public security for all of our admistration portals.

Basically, the survey is to provide an integrated land banking system for the citizens where we will issue property passbook as such we have issued for agricultural lands. The passbook will help citizens to claim their ownership," said A Ramesh, Deputy Commissioner, Yousufguda, GHMC.

"We cannot share our personals to everyone. will definitely take a call against the act if the government try to force public to present personal details of public," said Rala Lakshmi Yadhav, Vice-President, BC Welfare Association for Women.

 "The survey is to provide an integrated land banking system for the citizens where we will issue property passbook as such we have issued for agricultural lands. There is no need to worry." - A Ramesh, Deputy Commissioner, Yousufguda, GHMC

It is dangerous as the survey team members could contract coronavirus and spread it. Is there any need for such an exercise? Instead, use the personnel to clear public grievances on civic issues. See the condition of roads and drains – R V N B Ravi Prasad, a resident of Malkajgiri