HP govt mulling returning Sadhupul land to Patanjali Yogpeeth

The Himachal Pradesh government is considering returning a piece of land at Sadhupul in Solan district to Yoga Guru Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth.

HP Revenue minister Kaul Singh Thakur informed state Assembly this during the Question Hour today while replying to a question of Anirudh Singh (congress).

The minister said 96.02-bigha land in Sadhupul near Kandaghat in Solan district was given to Patanjali Yogpeeth after payment of Rs 17,31,214 under the lease rules by the previous government in January 2010 for token lease of Rs 1 per month for a period of 99 years.

The land was given to the Yogpeeth for development of medical science, health tourism and production of herbal plants.

The lease was cancelled by the present Cabinet on February 19, 2013. The matter regarding giving the land again to Patanjali Yogpeeth is under consideration and the technical and legal aspects are being taken into consideration, he said.

Meanwhile, Rural Development minister Sudhir Sharma defending the smart city status for Dharamsala, said the population of the town was 55,543 and it fulfilled the criteria of 50,000 population while Solan and Mandi towns did not meet the population yardstick.

Replying to a question of Rajiv Bindal (BJP), the minister said under the Smart City project Dharamsala would get grant of Rs 500 crore and Rs 190 crore had been received by February 15.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)