KANNUR: Union minister for rural developmentJairam Ramesh will declare Kerala‘s Kannur as the first zero-landless district in the country on Friday.The declaration would mark a major development in the government’s endeavor to make Kerala a zero-landless (citizens) state by 2015.

Announcing the move to declare Kannur as the first zero-landless district, collector Rathan Kelkar said 11,118 people, including 85 belonging to scheduled tribes, would get title deeds on Kerala piravi day.

The district administration has identified 500.81 acres for distribution. The identified land included 485.13 acres of excess (michcha bhoomi) land and 15.68 acres of government (puramboke) land in Thaliparamba, Kannur and Thalassery taluks.

Under the project, all landless families would get three cents each while scheduled tribe members would get an acre each in Aralam village. The beneficiaries—from Thaliparamba, Kannur and Thalassery taluks—were selected from a total of 12,179 applicants, Kelkar said, adding that those eligible people who were not allotted land would be considered in the next phase.

Revenue minister Adoor Prakash would over preside over Friday’s function. The title deeds would be distributed among the beneficiaries at the function, which would also be attended by Union minister Mullappally Ramachandran, and state ministers P K Kunhalikutty, K M Mani, K C Joseph, and K P Mohanan, besides MPs and MLAs from the district.