New Delhi:
The Union Cabinet is all set to clear the landmark Land Acquisition and Resettlement Bill on Monday. However, there are a few changes that have been incorporated in the cabinet note.
- The compensation to the farmer will not be six times the market rate as asked for by Rahul Gandhi and the National Advisory Council, but four times.
- All linear projects like railways, canals and power lines will not be covered under the bill.
- In the draft bill, no irrigated multi-crop land could be acquired. Now, Jairam Ramesh has allowed acquisition up to five per cent, but an equal area of wasteland within the district will have to be developed.
- Also, if the land acquired is not used for the stated purpose, it will not be returned to the original owner, but go to the state land authority.
The land acquisition bill, put up for public discussion last month, is an attempt to change an outdated law passed more than a century ago. It will also be the first central legislation on resettlement and rehabilitation of families necessitated by land acquisition.
The bill also proposes that if a private company is acquiring land over 100 acres for a public purpose, all the land will be acquired by the government.
The last time the Cabinet discussed the land acquisition bill and passed amendments, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had opposed the bill. Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has consulted her twice and has been building up support amongst cabinet ministers. With Rahul Gandhi's stamp of approval, the complex land acquisition bill seems all set to be cleared by Cabinet and introduced in this session of Parliament.