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Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Kolkata (SMPK) has reclaimed 15.6 acres of port land spread across 24 parcels following a coordinated effort to remove encroachments. The recovery is part of the port authority’s continuing efforts to protect and improve the use of its land assets. Earlier official data submitted to Parliament showed 170.4 acres under encroachment at the Kolkata Dock System, involving 706 identified encroachers. The port has been using inspections, security personnel, boundary walls and fencing, along with support from local authorities, to prevent fresh encroachments and recover occupied land.
Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Kolkata (SMPK) has reclaimed 15.6 acres of port land that had been under encroachment, with the recovered area spread across 24 separate parcels. The action forms part of an ongoing effort to protect the port’s land assets and bring encroached properties back under its control.
The latest recovery follows coordinated action involving the port authorities and government agencies. The reclamation assumes significance given the scale of land managed by the Kolkata Dock System (KDS), where encroachment has been a longstanding issue requiring regular monitoring and enforcement.
Official information placed before the Rajya Sabha earlier showed that KDS had identified 170.4 acres of land under encroachment, involving 706 encroachers. The data covered the port’s land position and the measures being undertaken to detect and remove unauthorised occupation.
The KDS has divided its land holdings between areas within and outside the customs-bound zone. The official data recorded 421 acres within the customs-bound area and 4,122 acres outside it, taking the total landholding covered by the annexure to 4,543 acres.
The reclamation drive is also linked to a broader strategy of improving the utilisation of port-owned land. The authority has identified opportunities to use its property for activities that complement port operations, including warehousing, ship repair facilities and riverfront development.
The port had reported revenue of INR 2,994.54 crore from its land assets over the preceding five years in the parliamentary response. It also stated that steps were being taken to improve land monetisation and optimise the use of available assets.
Preventing further encroachment remains an important part of the land-management process. According to the official response, inspections are conducted periodically by the Estate Division and port security personnel to identify fresh instances of unauthorised occupation. Once an encroachment is detected, removal action can be undertaken with the assistance of port security personnel and, where required, local police or through legal intervention.
The port has also strengthened physical security around vulnerable properties. Static guards are deployed at selected plots located away from the headquarters, particularly where security concerns are higher. Boundary walls and fencing are increasingly being installed around vacant land to prevent fresh encroachments.
These measures indicate that land recovery is being pursued alongside longer-term asset management. Reclaiming occupied parcels can provide the port with greater control over its property portfolio while creating opportunities for productive use of land that was previously unavailable.
For a major port complex operating within a densely developed metropolitan region, effective land management has implications beyond property ownership. It can support logistics-related activities, commercial development and port-linked infrastructure while helping protect strategically located public assets.
The recovery of 15.6 acres therefore represents a specific enforcement outcome within a wider programme aimed at securing Kolkata port’s land holdings, preventing renewed encroachment and improving the productive utilisation of its estate.
Source- Sansad
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