THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Cabinet has decided to retrieve the land near Padmanabhaswamy temple, where Pathrakkulam existed. The land is currently under the possession of Sree Vidyadhiraja Trust headed by former chief secretary R Ramachnadran Nair.

This 65 cent land in the heart of the city is valued at Rs 100 crore going by the current land value in the area. Further procedures on the land will be initiated by the government after the Supreme Court order on the case, which is being pursued by the government and the Travancore Royal family, is delivered.

The land worth crores of rupees has been in the possession of the Vidhyadiraja Trust since 1976. On June 9, 1976, during emergency period, the land was leased out to the Trust. The Pathrakkulam (pond) that was used in the past by Padmanabha temple was reclaimed and an auditorium (Theerthapada mandapam) was built on a portion of the land. By filling the pond with sand, the inflow of water was blocked and it was done against land rules. The government started to act, pointing out these illegal activities on the land. This was a pond that once negated the effects flooding in the capital city.

As per the lease agreement, the Trust was liable to pay Rs 750/cent to the government every year but as the trust had defaulted the payment, the previous LDF government decided to cancel the lease agreement on the land in 2007.

The trust subsequently moved the high court and the Supreme Court against the government decision. The court temporarily stayed the order to cancel the lease and asked the government to clarify the reason for the cancellation. It also asked the government to hear the version of Trust office bearers.

In a detailed hearing, it was understood that the pond was unlawfully reclaimed for building an auditorium, for which the trust charged Rs 25000 as daily rent.

The procedures for retrieving the land were initiated about one and a half year ago but the files regarding this remained held up for years in revenue, law and registration departments in Secretariat due the interference of a lobby of bureaucrats. Finally it was the intervention of Revenue Minister E Chandrasekharan that sped up the procedures to retrieve the land.

Meanwhile, Ramachandran Nair said the Trust would move the apex court against the government’s move to retrieve the land. He alleged that the government was being misled by certain people.