Bihar revenue depts revokes suspension of 224 employees ahead of 2027 Census survey

The department issued fresh instructions to all district magistrates, who are the controlling officers for these employees, directing them to revoke the suspensions and treat the period as regular service

The revenue and land reforms department on Tuesday issued orders to revoke suspension of 224 employees, who had been on the mass casual leave since mid-February in protest against the government’s reluctance to fulfil their demands despite a written agreement last year.

An official press release issued by the department today made the position clear that the employees were suspended between February 11 and April 19 after district collectors acted under the Bihar Revenue Service Rules, 2025. (HT Photo)

The department issued fresh instructions to all district magistrates, who are the controlling officers for these employees, directing them to revoke the suspensions and treat the period as regular service. The decision, officials said, was taken primarily to ensure smooth conduct of field work for the upcoming 2027 national census, a massive exercise in which revenue personnel play a key role in door-to-door enumeration and data verification.

An official press release issued by the department today made the position clear that the employees were suspended between February 11 and April 19 after district collectors acted under the Bihar Revenue Service Rules, 2025. It emphasised that no direct suspension order had come from the then deputy chief minister and revenue minister Vijay Kumar Sinha and the action was taken locally when staff failed to resume duties despite repeated notices.

The employees, affiliated with the Bihar Rajya Bhumi Sudhar Karmchari Sangh under the banner of the joint struggle forum, had launched an indefinite stir on February 11 demanding higher grade pay, travel and internet allowances, withdrawal of pending departmental inquiries, redesignation of posts and faster promotions. Union president Chandrashekhar Chaubey told HT that most of these demands have now been accepted after several rounds of talks with the government.

“The orders have reached the DMs. We are waiting for ground-level action so we can formally call off the agitation,” Chaubey said.

The nearly two-and-a-half-month strike had brought the land-related work to a virtual standstill across circle offices in the state. Routine but vital services — mutation of land records (dakhal-kharij), name transfers, issuance of certificates and even preliminary census-related surveys — were badly hit, leaving thousands of citizens waiting for paperwork.

Additional secretary Mahendra Pal, in a letter dated April 19, specifically highlighted the census deadline and urged collectors to facilitate the employees’ return. Separate instructions were also sent on April 17 for those who had already reported back for duty.

The relief, however, does not extend to the parallel strike by officers of the Bihar Revenue Service (BRS). As many as 47 circle officers (COs) and revenue officers (ROs) remain suspended on charges of dereliction of duty and spreading misinformation. Sources in the department said that roposals to revoke their suspensions are under consideration, but the officers have so far refused to budge.

The development comes barely weeks after chief minister Samrat Chaudhary took charge. A political observer Rama Shankar Arya viewed it as the new government’s first major administrative signal — moving away from confrontation and towards resolution to get public services back on track. A senior official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the step was “practical” given the looming census and the daily hardships faced by ordinary citizens at the anchal (zone) level.

With the suspensions lifted, revenue offices are expected to reopen fully in the coming days. For now, the focus remains on clearing the backlog and ensuring that the 2027 census preparations do not suffer any further delay.