KUCHING: Up to October, 2012, the Land and Survey Department had received applications for perimeter survey of 541 areas under the Natives Customary Rights (NCR) lands.

Of the total applications, 367 areas with a total of 604,424 hectares (1,493,548 acres) had been approved for perimeter survey.

“The perimeter survey works for 204 areas covering 287,294 hectares (709,911 acres) had been implemented. Of the total, 91 areas with a total of 111,845 hectares (276,372 acres) had been gazetted as Natives Communal Reserve (Agriculture) under Section 6 of the State Land Code.

“It involved land areas owned by Malay, Melanau, Iban, Bidayuh, Bisaya, Kayan, Kedayan, Kelabit and Lun Bawang. From the total, the gazetting for 72 areas had been forwarded to the community leaders of the respective communities,” Second Minister of Resource Planning Environment, Datuk Amar Haji Awang Tengah Ali Hassan said in his winding-up speech in the State Legislative Assembly here yesterday.

Tengah added that based on the record of the Land and Survey Department the delay in implementing the perimeter survey of NCR lands in Tamin area only involved an area covering 1,393 hectares which had been completed.

He also said that the perimeter survey of NCR lands using HandHeld Global Positioning System (GPS) did not meet the standard required for cadaster survey and as such was not used by the Land and Survey Department in the perimeter survey under the NCR new initiative or any other cadaster survey works.

Tengah informed that compensation totalling RM271,423,950.59 to the people involved with the implementation of Bakun Hydro Dam project had been fully resolved.

The people who chose to be placed under the Sungai Asap Resettlement Scheme had been given free room (each family worth RM5O,000) while three acres for agriculture had also been given to each head of family involved.

Tengah also informed that an area covering 302.9 hectares in Samalaju had been placed under Section 5 (3) and (4) of the State Land Code for the purpose of Samalaju Industrial Park and Township Phase 2. And the repossession of the land did not involve resettling of Kampung Nyalau as alleged.

Tengah said the classification of land be it town lands, suburban lands or rural lands did not take into account in the assessment for village extension scheme and resettlement scheme. The premium rate imposed was influenced by the land market value. Nonetheless, the government had fixed the premium rate for both scheme based at 25 per cent of the market prices of the lots.

He explained the premium rate for village extension scheme and resettlement scheme being used currently was reasonable and appropriate.

On the issue of public transport in Kuching City, Tengah informed that the Sarawak Government had recently completed carrying out a Kuching Urban Traffic Study, and from the result of the study, the government planned to carry out a pilot project to provide a special route for bus services starting from the city centre right up to Kuching Sentral Regional Bus Terminal, however it is subjected to fund allocation.

Tengah also informed the august House that based on the record at the Samarahan Division Land and Survey Department there was no complaint of cheating received on land transactions.

Tengah said Kampung Bakam, Kampung Siwak and Kampung Beraya in Miri were already surveyed under Chapter III of the State Land Code in 1990 involving a total of 1,437 lots covering a total area of 1,687 hectares. Some 311 lots had been issued with land titles under Section 19 of the State Land Code.

The balance of 1,126 lots had not been issued with land titles because the Land and Survey Department had received a lot of complaints related to unverified claims and also claims being disputed.

(Source:  Sarawak Tribune, 27 November 2012)