Should the Land Acquisition Act be Amended?

Should the Land Acquisition Act be Amended?

FM Arun Jaitley said that the government plans to make amendments in the stringent land acquisition law. It can even go for the amendments without opposition’s support. The Land Acquisition Act was amended last year in the UPA regime. It replaced old 1894 act to create a balance by giving fair compensation for land acquisitions. It is better called as farmer friendly act. The act which was drafted to provide fairness for farmers will again be changed to make it business friendly. Do you support the idea? Should the Land Acquisition Act be amended again?

Yes

• The costs to acquire the lands are rising and it is making really tough to acquire the land for important and significant projects.

• The act is drafted keeping in mind the land owners whereas it should be drafted keeping in mind the interests of both the parties.

• The stringent laws make the entire land acquisition process complex and lengthy following which the projects incur extra costs.

• The amendment is unlikely to touch the sections related to rehabilitation, compensation and resettlement. So, there should not be any problem in amending the act.

• The $12 billion project of Posco plant in Odisha got delayed due to the issues related to acquisition of land.

• Due to the changes made in the land act in 2013, the land costs have rose to 40% of total project cost compared to initial costs of 5%.

No

• The land acquisition act was passed by the Upper House and Lower House after due consideration, and therefore it should not be changed in a year.

• The costs of acquisition are rising but it doesn’t imply that the land owners should bear the losses.

• Any form of amendments will further create problems and complicate the clear defined acquisition process.

• The amendments in the bill will create loop holes that the companies can use for their own benefit. Ultimately, land owners will have to suffer the price.

• What does the ruling party want to prove? Earlier it was farmer friendly and now all of a sudden it intends to become business friendly.

Conclusion

The land acquisition act was amended in 2013, and it is hardly one year to the amendments. The act was amended to bring transparency and clarity in the system. The main motive was that the land owners should not feel pressurized to make a deal. They should get the fair value for their property. And there is nothing wrong in it. The land costs have become high but then the projects have to take care of those expenses with other costs.