When the government issued an order allowing the fields and wetlands that have been barren for years without cultivation to be classified for other purposes, the government mainly aimed at the huge income that would be generated from this. A fee was also announced for land reclassification up to twenty-five cents .The fee is ten per cent of the fair value if the reclassified land is above that. The essence of the judgment is that the fee should be imposed only ten per cent of the fair value of the land above 25 cents. Equity is when government benefits are equally accessible to all. A fee of ten per cent of the fair value of the entire land is a form of extortion when an application is made for reclassification of thirty or fifty cents of land.

While the fair value of land is fixed frequently, it would be a costly arrangement to apply the same to declassified land. The Government argued before the Division Bench that the conversion fee for up to twenty five cents was allowed free of cost only to help the small farmers who did not have much land. From February 25, 2021, things were done in the state as per this order. Earlier, the single bench had ordered that only 11.65 cents in excess of 25 cents should be paid a fee of ten percent of the fair value in a petition related to reclassification of land at 36.65 cents. The important order of the division bench is in the government appeal against this. The notice of the revenue department was to give a fee of 1.74 lakh rupees which is ten percent of the fair value of 36.65 cents to the land owner. This amount will come down significantly with the Division Bench judgment.

The government should not treat land reclassification as a profitable business. The state has lakhs of acres of land lying fallow for decades without any cultivation. It is not known that any action has been taken at the government level so far except for saying that the barren land will be fully recovered for cultivation. Idle forested lands are a burden to their owners. It is in this context that the government has come up with a scheme to allow such land to be converted for other beneficial purposes. A huge response followed. Applications piled up in revenue offices. Temporary staff had to be assigned to sort them and make decisions. Lakhs of applications have already been settled. Even after that, it is reported that more than two lakh applications are pending. Crores of rupees have reached the treasury as conversion fees.

There are indications that the government is planning to appeal against the division bench order which upheld the single bench verdict that no fee must be charged up to 25 cents regardless of the amount of land. If this happens, there is a possibility of delay in the decision on the pending applications. If the government's objective is the birthright, it is better not to go for an appeal. Government land reclassification should not be seen as an inexhaustible mine which is trying to increase revenue by any means.