Jammu, April 3 -- Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Thursday that over 16,000 kanals of land under the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) are currently being encroached upon, and that eviction drives are being carried out in a phased and time-bound manner.

In response to a question from BJP MLA Dr Narinder Singh Raina in the assembly, the chief minister stated that the total land managed by the JDA amounts to 80,976 kanals and 10 marlas, of which 16,127 kanals and 10 marlas are under illegal occupation.

In Jammu and Kashmir, land is traditionally measured using units like 'kanal' and 'marla', which are part of an older system still widely used in property and agriculture. One kanal is equal to 20 marlas, and a kanal measures about 5,4...