Mann Government Reclaims Idle PUDA, GLADA Lands for Development; Ends Decades of ‘Mafia Raj’ in Punjab

For long, vast tracts of government land across Punjab — once meant for public use — had been reduced to the playgrounds of the powerful. Under successive governments, these high-value assets of PUDA, GLADA, and other departments lay dormant, often encroached upon or informally occupied, their potential squandered.

Now, under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, that story appears to be changing course. The AAP government has moved to unlock the economic and social value of these long-neglected parcels, rolling out three major projects that officials say could trigger new waves of employment and investment.

The exercise, which the state government describes as part of its “development plan,” seeks to reclaim and repurpose billions worth of government land — a move the Chief Minister has positioned as both a correction of past neglect and a signal of intent. “No more mafia raj,” the government has declared, vowing to turn what it calls “idle capital” into living assets for the people of Punjab.

At Budhlada, land under the Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) that had remained unutilised for years is now being developed into a modern mandi complex to support local farmers. In Ludhiana, disused property of PunAgro is being converted into an international-standard convention centre, projected to draw investors and entrepreneurs to the state’s industrial hub. Similar projects, officials say, are in the pipeline for other urban pockets.

Predictably, the moves have stirred the political pot. While the ruling party hails the initiative as a model of “clean intent and visible delivery,” the Opposition has questioned the pace and priorities of these conversions. Political watchers, however, point out that much of the criticism comes from quarters that once presided over the same tracts of land — now being reactivated after years of inertia.

For the Mann government, the effort is about more than reclaiming real estate; it is a political statement. “The resources of Punjab belong to its people, not to any entrenched class,” the Chief Minister has said repeatedly. That assertion, coupled with visible on-ground activity, signals a shift from rhetoric to execution — and a message that Punjab’s development grid is being re-drawn, plot by plot.