UR Properties’s land conversion flagged as illegal by Puttur AC
Mangaluru
Land conversion orders issued for project linked to UR Properties in Chikkamunnuru village of Puttur taluk have been flagged as prima facie illegal by the Assistant Commissioner (AC), Puttur sub-division, who has cited fabricated road access, inclusion of non-converted land, and inflated land extent in official sketches.
Acting on a complaint by activist H Mohammad Ali, the AC Stella Varghese has directed the Tahsildar to conduct a spot inspection, re-verify records, and submit a detailed report within one week, raising serious questions over how the conversions were approved in the first place. The AC has instructed the Tahsildar on December 21, 2025. On December 23, UR Properties inaugurated nearly 10 acre layout (Shreema Theme Park) on December 23. This real estate company was founded by Ujwal Prabhu.
In an official letter to the Tahsildar, the AC noted that four land conversion orders issued by the Puttur taluk office, which were subsequently used for development purposes by U R Properties, suffer from multiple legal and procedural violations. The letter makes it clear that the defects are not minor or technical in nature, but go to the core eligibility of the land for conversion under existing rules.
The land in question is located in Chikkamunnuru village, primarily involving Survey No. 195/2 measuring 3.48 acres, along with three other parcels converted from agricultural to non-agricultural (residential) use. According to the AC’s findings, the conversion sketches prepared by the taluk office falsely show access roads between land parcels, even though no such connecting roads exist on the ground.
Access road connectivity is a mandatory condition for granting land conversion. However, the AC’s letter states that roads have been shown merely on paper, creating the impression that the land parcels are legally accessible, when in reality they are not. In one instance, the conversion of Survey No. 195/2 (3.48 acres) claims access through Survey No. 195/1 (0.19 acres). But the official sketch for Survey No. 195/1 does not show any road or even a reserved pathway, directly contradicting the claim made in the larger parcel’s conversion map.
The AC further observed that in some of the conversion sketches, land parcels that were never converted at all have been merged into the approved maps. Specifically, Survey No. 195/3 (0.03 acres) and Survey No. 190/3 (0.05 acres)—both agricultural and not covered by any conversion order—were allegedly included in the sketches of converted land, thereby artificially enlarging the project area.
In addition to this, the AC flagged cases where the extent of land shown in the sketches exceeds the actual area of the survey numbers, pointing to inflated measurements. Such discrepancies, the letter notes, cannot occur without serious lapses at the official level and raise concerns about possible manipulation of revenue records.
The violations highlighted by the AC closely mirror the allegations made by activist H Mohammad Ali in his representations dated July 19 and July 25, 2025. In his complaint, Ali detailed how four conversion orders—bearing reference numbers LCUM10061237, LCUM10061234, LCUM10063240 and LCUM10061233—were issued without basic compliance, yet were later used to push forward a large real estate layout.
Ali also pointed out that in earlier proceedings, the AC’s office had explicitly ordered that a five-link-wide pathway be earmarked and protected to ensure access. However, the final conversion orders and sketches issued by the taluk office failed to show this pathway, amounting to what Ali described as clear dereliction of duty by revenue officials.
Despite these defects, the disputed conversion sketches were used to secure approval for a multi-site residential layout from the Puttur Urban Development Authority (PUDA). Following this, the Puttur City Municipality initiated steps to grant further approvals, effectively advancing the project linked to U R Properties. The AC’s letter notes that these approvals were based on flawed and misleading documents, potentially exposing the authorities to legal and administrative consequences.
Taking cognisance of the matter, the AC has now directed the Tahsildar to re-examine all four conversion orders, conduct a field-level inspection, and verify whether the roads, boundaries, and land extents shown in the sketches actually exist on site. The Tahsildar has also been asked to take action strictly in accordance with law and submit a clear explanation and factual report to the AC’s office within a week.
Importantly, the AC has termed the issue one of public interest, indicating that the alleged violations go beyond a private dispute and have wider implications for urban planning, land governance, and the credibility of the revenue administration in Puttur taluk.
The development has triggered fresh scrutiny of land conversion practices in Dakshina Kannada, particularly amid rapid urban expansion and rising demand for residential layouts. With the Assistant Commissioner formally recording that the conversion orders appear illegal on the face of the record, the spotlight is now firmly on the revenue officials who processed the files—and on whether the land conversion granted for UR Properties will ultimately survive legal and administrative review.