Conceding ground to the Opposition parties, the Government on Monday allowed “Consent and Social Impact Assessment” to make a resounding “comeback” into the land Acquisition Bill after almost all stakeholders insisted on their inclusion in the legislation. This means the Government has decided to go back to the 2013 land Acquisition Bill, which it had proposed to amend.
Six amendments were discussed in the Select Parliamentary Committee headed by BJP’s SS Ahluwalia of which the provisions relating to the consent clause, social impact assessment, replacing the term private company with private entity were agreed upon according to a Biju Janata Dal member in the panel. “Social Impact Assessment and consent clauses have made their come back,” he said.
Sources said there are sticking clauses, including “five year clause”, with the Congress insisting that land should be returned to the seller if the project does not take off within five years. The Government insists that land in judicial dispute should not be bound within five-year time-frame for launching a project.
Besides, the Congress and the Government have differences on what constitutes “a designated account…paid or deposited” while making a land deal. A BJP member in the committee, however, said a clause-by-clause discussion would proceed on Tuesday and a final view has not been taken by the Government. “The Congress and the Government are yet to reconcile their views on some clauses,” he said.
BJP members in the Committee are understood to have moved amendments seeking to bring back social impact assessment and consent clause. The Congress had sought restoration of the consent of 80 per cent of land-owners to be obtained for private projects and that of 70 per cent for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects.
The present Bill brought by the BJP-led-National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government exempted five categories — defence, rural infrastructure, affordable housing, industrial corridors and infrastructure projects, including PPP projects — from taking consent of land owners, where the Government owns the land. It also exempted requirements of social impact assessment and restrictions on acquisition of multi-cropped land for various projects.
With considerable narrowing down of differences and the Government forced to “walk an extra-mile” to accommodate Congress’ demands, a consensus report may come out by August 7. The Bill may look like the Act of 2013, claimed Congress members.
The 2013 Act of the UPA Government required consent of 70 per cent of landholders for PPP projects, and 80 per cent for private projects. The NDA Bill did away with this requirement. RSS outfits have also strongly opposed several provisions in the Ordinance brought by the BJP Government replacing the land Acquisition law passed by the UPA dispensation.
In their submission to the Joint Committee of Parliament, RSS linked organisations had demanded inclusion of the consent clause and social impact assessment in the new legislation.
Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) and Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) asked for the consent of at least 51 per cent of farmers before land is required from farmers.
SJM has said the 2014 land Ordinance replaced the 2013 Act, passed by the UPA Government, “in undue hurry” and the re-promulgated Ordinance contains several “unacceptable” sections even after incorporation of several amendments.
The SJM said a project should be undertaken only after making social and environmental impact assessment, something which is followed by World Bank even for roads built by its funding. This practice should be followed by the Government in construction of PPP in infrastructure projects, it said.
The SJM also said land use change (from the purpose for which land has been acquired) must not be allowed, and in case the beneficiary of land acquisition fails to use the land within specified period, land be returned to the original owners, without applying any conditions.
It also demanded issue of a White Paper about land acquisition by the Governments since 1947 stating its present status, unused land lying with government and also with big industries.
“Agricultural and forest land should not be allowed to be acquired for any other purpose, in the interest of food security of the nation,” they said. The Government should not own the responsibility to acquire land for the needs of private industries,” SJM further said.
Prabhakar Kelkar, BKS general secretary, was of the view that the consent of a minimum of 51 per cent of farmers must be obtained before acquiring land.