Dhaka: The first meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Land of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad was held today at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, chaired by committee chairman Naser Rahman. The meeting marked the commencement of the committee's oversight and advisory functions concerning the Ministry of Land.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the meeting was attended by Land Minister Md Mizanur Rahman Minu, State Minister for Land Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin, and committee members including Zainal Abdin, Shah Md Waresh Ali Mamun, Ershad Ullah, Sultana Ahmed, Md Mahbubur Rahman (Belal), and Muhammadullah. At the beginning, the chairman, committee members, and relevant officials introduced themselves, setting the stage for collaborative engagements. The Ministry of Land provided a briefing on the manpower of its departments and agencies, their organisational structures, functions, major achievements, and future plans.
The committee resolved to initiate measures to transfer the Registration Department, currently under the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, to the Ministry of Land. This move aims to streamline operations and enhance administrative efficiency within land management.
Several ongoing projects were highlighted during the meeting, including the Land Management Automation Project, the Mouza and Plot-based National Digital Land Zoning Project, and the Capacity Enhancement for Digital Survey of the Department of Land Records and Surveys. Additional projects involve the renovation and repair of record rooms at deputy commissioners' offices, the establishment of digitalised land management systems through digital land surveys, and the construction of city and union land offices across the country, as well as integrated upazila land complexes.
The committee recommended prioritising revenue collection and enhancing public services in upcoming land-related projects. It also urged the ministry to address vacancies at the field level to accelerate land-related services. In a move to gain firsthand insight into the ministry's operations, the committee decided to visit the Land Bhaban to observe its activities directly.
In attendance were the senior secretary of the Ministry of Land, heads of departments and agencies under the ministry, senior officials, and officials of the Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat.