KUCHING: Nearly 3 million acres of Native Customary Rights (NCR) land have been surveyed under Sarawak’s ongoing land survey programme.

Sarawak Land and Survey Department (JTS) said that from Oct 2010 to May 31 this year, a total of 1.2 million hectares or 2,972,620 acres of NCR land were surveyed under phase one of the programme, which involved perimeter surveys.

It added of the total, 935,760 hectares (2,312,263 acres) were later gazetted as Native Communal Reserves under Section 6 of the State Land Code (SLC).

“As for phase two of the programme, which involved lot surveys and the issuance of land titles under Section 18 of SLC, 120,608 hectares (298,022 acres) have been surveyed into 101,271 individual lots, with 32,530 land titles already issued under Section 18,” it said in a statement on Monday (June 30).

The department added that it has long recognised the NCR of the Bumiputera over their land, dating as far back as the 1960s, and that this recognition has been a continuous effort.

“We wished to emphasised that NCR land surveys only proceed following applications from claimants, which are reviewed for legal validity,” it said.

It also said claimants are encouraged to cooperate by being present during field surveys, clearly marking boundaries and ensuring that the lands are free from disputes.

“To ensure transparency, the government conducts two dialogue sessions, a roundtable session and field dialogues, with claimants before any survey begins,” it said.

JTS also said that those with ongoing court cases involving NCR land disputes may withdraw their cases and may apply to have their land surveyed through the programme by submitting a formal application to the relevant Divisional Land and Survey Office.

On provisional leases (PLs), JTS said the government has decided that genuine NCR land must be excluded before a PL can be issued.

“Since March 24, 2015, the government no longer considers applications for state land for commercial plantation purposes,” it said.

Regarding land needed for public infrastructure, JTS clarified that acquisitions, including titled and NCR-claimed land, are necessary to advance development projects that benefit the community.

“Such acquisitions are carried out under Chapter 81 of the SLC and Article 13 of the Federal Constitution, ensuring fair compensation based on current market valuations of affected land, crops and structures,” it said.