How India's Land Acquisition Bill Has Evolved Over Time

On August 3, according to media reports, the central government finally decided to accept the structure of the UPA government's Land Acquisition Bill. The opposition, parties, the media and activists have been opposing the amended bill for long, claiming that it is anti-farmer. The Narendra Modi government, finally, decided to remove the controversial clauses they added to the UPA's 2013 Bill.

The NDA government will remove the clause that exempts certain projects from the requirement that land acquisition must have consent of 70 per cent of the people who are displaced if they are public-private partnership (PPP) projects. (Private projects need the consent of 80 per cent of the affected people.) The NDA government will also remove the clause to exempt such projects from social impact assessment while acquiring land in India. The NDA government had recently said that the state governments concerned would be free to exempt projects from the consent and social impact assessment requirement if they wish. 

With these changes, the NDA government expects the Bill to be passed in the monsoon season of the Parliament.

The land acquisition bill will influence transactions in real estate in India in important ways. Let us see how the Land Acquisition Bill has evolved over the past few years.

The Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007

• While acquiring property in India for public or private sector projects, a social impact assessment (SIA) study is mandatory. Tribals, forest-dwellers, and people with tenancy rights are also eligible for compensation, according to the relevant laws of the Indian states.
• The government should compensate land owners for loss or damage to their land or agricultural crops. The government should also resettle and rehabilitate the people affected by the land acquisition process.
• Compensation will be determined based on the “intended use of land” or the current market price of the land.
• The Land Acquisition Compensation Disputes Settlement Authority (LACDSA) at the state and central levels will adjudicate disputes related to the land acquisition process.
• If the land acquired remains unused for five years, it will be returned to the government, depending on which government acquired the land.

The Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2007

• Benefits and compensation to the people displaced by land acquisition may include land, home, monetary compensation, skills training and/or preferential treatment in employment.
• When 400 or more families are affected en masse, they will be considered “affected”. To receive displacement benefits, the families should have been residing in the affected area for five years.
• It is the responsibility of the Administrator for Rehabilitation and Resettlement to formulate, execute, and monitor rehabilitation and resettlement.
• The grievances related to the rehabilitation and resettlement process will be addressed by an Ombudsman.

The Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011

• Land may be acquired only for public purposes.
• When land is acquired by private companies or by public-private partnerships (PPP), 80 per cent of the affected people must consent to it.
• The land acquisition process will involve a Social Impact Assessment survey. Projects built on land greater than 50 acres in urban areas and 100 acres in the rural areas will be subject to social impact assessment.
• There should be a preliminary notification stating the intent for acquisition and a declaration of acquisition. Landowners should be compensated within the specified time period and should be rehabilitated and resettled. Resettlement areas should have the basic infrastructure like roads, drainage and provision for drinking water.
• The market value of the land will be the highest land value specified while registering sale deeds or calculated by averaging the best 50 per cent of most expensive sale deeds in the previous three years for such land in the locality. In rural area, the land value is doubled while in urban areas it is not. Then, the value of the land is added to everything that is situated on the land, like buildings and trees. The final compensation is arrived at by doubling this figure.
• Acquired land, if not utilised for 10 years, will be transferred to the land bank of the government. If the land is transferred to someone else, 20 per cent of the appreciated value of the land will be shared with the owners.
• These provisions do not apply if there is an emergency like defence, national security, or a natural calamity. But, in such cases, 80 per cent of the compensation must be paid.

The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013

• The land acquisition process should have the consent of 80 per cent of the displaced people if the land is acquired for a private project. If it is for a PPP project, 70 per cent of the people should consent to it. If it is for a government project, consent is not required. Social impact assessment is mandatory except when these are urgent projects or irrigation projects for which environment impact assessment is mandatory.
• The size of the agricultural land acquired for projects in a district or state must not exceed the total net sown area of the district or the state.
• If the land acquired is not utilised for five years since it was acquired, it must be given back to the original owners or transferred to a land bank.
• One member of families affected by the process should be granted employment.
• They should also be rehabilitated and resettled. No such consent is required in case of public sector undertakings (PSUs).
• Land acquired under the act, if not utilised for five years, should be returned to the original owners or the land bank. When the government temporarily acquires land for a maximum period of three years, there is no provision for rehabilitation and resettlement.
• These provisions of The Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011 do not apply to acquisitions under 16 existing legislations including the Special Economic Zones Act, 2005, the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, and the Railways Act, 1989. These provisions do not apply to acquisition of land for private educational institutions or hospitals either.
• If a government department commits an offence, the head of the department will be considered guilty unless he proves that he tried to prevent the act.

The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015

• Certain categories of land use will be exempted from the clause which stipulates that 80 per cent of the displaced people should grant consent to land being acquired for private projects and that 70 per cent should grant consent for land being acquired for PPP projects: (1) Defence, (2) Rural infrastructure, (3) Affordable housing, (4) Industrial corridors, and (5) Infrastructure and social infrastructure projects. This also includes PPP projects where the government owns the land. If the government issues a notification, these projects will be exempted from social impact assessment and restrictions on the acquisition of agricultural land.
• If land acquired is not utilised, it must be returned to the land owners after (1) five years, or (2) any period specified at the time of initiation of the project, whichever is later.
• The provisions of the 2013 land acquisition act will apply to any private entity and not merely private companies.
• The provisions of the 2013 land acquisition act will also apply to acquisition of land for private educational institutions or hospitals too.
• Head of the departments of government agencies cannot be punished for the offences committed by their departments. If a government official commits an offence, without the sanction of the government, he cannot be punished, according to the Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

The Bill Passed In The Lok Sabha on March 10, 2015

• Social infrastructure will be removed from the categories of land use eligible for exemption from social impact assessment and consent clause.
• Industrial corridors will be defined as the projects of government/government undertakings and should extend up to 1 km on either side of the roadway or railway of the corridor.
• Before issuing notifications to the exempt projects from social impact assessment, the government must ensure that it has the minimum land required.
• Employment must be given to one member of the affected families, if they are engaged in farm labour.
• A government official who commits an offence, can be prosecuted according to the Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.