Objectives of Consolidation and the main elements of the Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953

The objectives and purpose of the law pertaining to consolidation have been described in the above-mentioned rules. Following in brief are the objectives that have been met by the whole process of consolidation.

1. Since the process of land consolidation is conducted on the basis of the previous land survey and settlement of any village, therefore consolidation officials, during the field-wise inspection try to estimate if any illegal orders have been passed in the period between the previous consolidation exercise and the present exercise. Special investigation is conducted in connection with the land vested in the Gram Sabha/ Local Authority or the State Government, and the land related to Section 132 of the Uttar Pradesh Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act,1950 and Land management Rules. If any such illegal orders or entries come to the knowledge of consolidation officials, then these are also corrected.
2. It is the responsibility of the consolidation officers during the consolidation exercise, to restore the permanent boundary marks of a village that have been damaged over a period of time and ensure the boundary markers are placed at the right places.
3. During the consolidation exercise, each land holding is marked with a Chak road or lane, and a street-side drain.
4. The approach roads on all sides of a village are constructed during the consolidation operation, so that the movement of the farmers/village residents is facilitated.
5. During the consolidation exercise, land is arranged and reserved for public purposes, such as school, hospital, community center, play field, veterinary hospital etc.
6. Land is allotted for habitation of population in future. This proposed land is meant for those belonging to the general category, and also for those belonging to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes who are landless and do not have dwellings.
7. The land left out after the consolidation exercise is obtained as fallow or uncultivated land, and it is allotted by the Gram Sabha of the village to the landless people on lease as per law.
8. The account book (Khatauni), survey book (Khasra) and land map (Sajra) of a revenue village is renewed, so that these can be preserved for a long time.
9. Disputes related to land (such as ownership, amendment in land map, division of cultivated portions, corrections in records of mutation etc) which otherwise is a long-drawn process, is disposed in a brief procedure, because the Consolidation Act is in itself a self-contained special law, under which the consolidation officials are provided with the authority as well.
10. The significance of the Consolidation Act is that it provides security to farmers with a legal procedure at different levels. The jurisdiction of other courts is withdrawn once a village becomes part of the consolidation process.
11. The law ensures that the advice of the consolidation committee elected by the farmers from amongst themselves will have to be compulsorily obtained at every stage of the consolidation exercise. Thus, the opinion of the consolidation committee, Gram Sabha and the general farmers is obtained at every stage of the exercise.
12. It is the sole discretion of the State Government whether a village or any part there of, is taken under the consolidation operation. The only constraint in this respect is that any village can be declared under consolidation again only 20 years after the publication of the Section-52 . In special circumstances this period can be 10 years.
13. Although no pre-condition has been defined in the law or the rules for beginning the consolidation exercise in any village except as mentioned above, but there are certain prerequisites. These are the resolution by the Gram Sabha to initiate the consolidation exercise in that village, a minimum of 40 per cent of the total village area being fit for cultivation, consent of a majority of the population of the village in favour of consolidation, and finally a recommendation for consolidation by the Collector/District Deputy Consolidation Director for conducting consolidation exercise again.
14. The law also ensures that if the consolidation exercise is undergoing in a village, and it appears at any stage that this exercise must be stopped, then according to Section 6 (1) of the Act, the Consolidation Commissioner has been given the power to issue a notification in order to stop the consolidation exercise. Certain pre-conditions in this regards have been described in Rule-17 of the Consolidation Act & Rules.
15. The law prohibits taking up of those disputes in civil courts of the villages in which consolidation operation has been completed, and such disputes should have been raised in the consolidation exercise and were not raised.
16. The law provides protection to the consolidation officials from any litigation, prosecution or other legal action for work done in good faith.
17. The law also provides that even after the consolidation exercise is completed in a village as per the publication of documents under Section 52 (1) of the rules, the orders issued under this law and those orders issued on subsequent petitions shall be implemented by the competent officials appointed under the rule.

Task Plan for the next five years

Guidelines

Number of proposed villages under the Consolidation Scheme
Number of pending villages	6106
(Those that are under the consolidation process)
Residual villages in the first stage	2894
(Those that have not been included in the consolidation process so far)
Probable villages in the second stage	3000
Total	12000

On the basis of available staff (as per the present situation)

Year	Estimated number of  residual villages at the beginning of the year	Number of  villages to be included in the consolidation exercise	Total	Estimated number of villages where the consolidation exercise would be completed	Estimated number of  residual villages at the end of the year
2007-2008	6106	1094	7200	1200	6000
2008-2009	6000	1200	7200	1200	6000
2009-2010	6000	1200	7200	1200	6000
2010-2011	6000	1200	7200	1200	6000
2011-2012	6000	1200	7200	1200	6000