THE SYMPOSIUM SOCIETY

The Symposium Society

Topic : Can India Develop Without Current Land Acquisition Bill?

India cannot continue with a pattern of industry that yields so few jobs but has such a large ecological footprint. Neither
can it be excited by the urban nightmares that its cities are today. The land law debate must be the occasion to talk about
these key national agendas.

Land Acquisition means acquiring land for public purpose (constructing health /educational institutions or
for any other welfare scheme) and paying a government-fixed compensation to cover losses incurred by the
land owners.

Till 2013, whenever government acquired a land, it was done under Land Acquisition Act 1894 Land
Acquisition Act of 1894 was very much in colonial in nature. Though tailor made to serve the colonial
interests, this has remained the primary tool for land acquisition in India even after independence. The
procedure followed was cumbersome and costly, often resulting in inordinate delay in land acquisition, and
people viewed the act as draconian (unusually harsh law). In genuine projects also, there was a considerable
difference between the market value of the property and the value that the land acquisition officer pays the
land owners.

In 2013 UPA Government passed Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition,
Resettlement and Rehabilitation Act (RFCTLAAR Act) 2013. It came into force on January 1, 2014.

In May 2014, BJP-led NDA came into power and took over the government. It decided to make amendments to
the Bill passed by UPA Government.

The major amendments are:

1. Removal of consent clause: As per the UPA law, land could be acquired only with approval of 70% of land
owners for PPP projects and 80% for private entities. However, the amendment, brought in by the NDA
removed this provision of consent for acquiring lands for five purposes Industrial corridors, Public Private
Partnership projects, Rural Infrastructure, Affordable housing and Defence. This has drawn much of the
criticism not only from political circle but also from activists like Anna Hazare who has launched a mass
protest against the bill.

2. Return of unutilized land: According to the Act 2013, if the land remains unutilised for five years, then it
needs to be returned to the owner. But according to the ordinance promulgated by the NDA government, the
period after which unutilised land needs to be returned will be five years, or any period specified at the time of
setting up the project.

3. According to the 2013 Act, land can be acquired by any private company. But according the recent
ordinance, land can be acquired by any private entity.

4. As per the new law, if any government official commits an offence during the process of acquisition, he/she
cannot be prosecuted without prior sanction from the government.

5. The amendments propose to include 13 legislations that are currently exempted under the purview of the
Act in the compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement provisions. This is, however, seen as a pro-farmer
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move as there was no uniform central policy of rehabilitation and resettlement.

The Need of Land Acquisition bill:

About 49% of Indian population is involved in agriculture and in return agriculture leads to only 14.9% of Indias
total GDP.
A vast majority of the farmers are ready to quit farming and move to the city. Many of them are forced in this
occupation due to traditional occupation reasons. If we want to move on the path of development and we
want foreign investors, this bill need to be passed. To benefit the society as a whole we need to build large
infrastructure projects such as lakes, dams, power plants, roads, factories, warehouses, build more
opportunities for education and employment, buildnew cities and so on. That is the only way out of poverty.
There is not a single developed nation that climbed out of poverty without building industries. Focus on
building a rapidly growing economy that provides education and employment opportunities to vast numbers of
rural Indians and you would solve the suicide epidemic not just among the Indian farmers but a bigger class of
rural Indians. The question is how do we get the lands to build those projects? Almost every piece of land is
occupied. Thus, you need to acquire the land for these projects from someone. Given the highly fragment land
ownership in India, you need to deal with not just 1 big land owner, but 1000s of small ones.
ONE important thing that we need to understand is that as per this bill, farmers land are a part of proposal. It's
nothing like only farmers land will be taken.

A good looking empty shell:

There are 60% roads which are mud roads in India . Now , when are they going to become hard tar or cement
roads ? This especially in rural areas . How does one expect growth without the participation if 69% of the
population ? People there want infrastrucutre , why just concentrate in urban areas ?Condition of consent and
SIA has been removed which provides no right to the farmer to decide for his land. It is doesnt have any
provision to return land if it is unused. As the central cause for all of the above, a decision-making process
that is totally controlled by government officials, with no democratic or public involvement. The earlier
ordinance had excluded private hospitals and private educational institutions from the list of infrastructure
projects. The amended clause includes them, which allows private companies to buy land at concessional
rates.

Question :

1. Will the current Land Acquisition Bill lead to more harm than good?

2. Is Removal of consent and SIA making the bill anti farmer?

3. Can Indias infrastructure be developed without Land Acquisition Bill?

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4. Almost all the countries including USA and China who are developed adopted Land Acquisition Bill so
can India develop without it?
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