Massive transfer of agricultural and forest land for development and infrastructural projects has created "rural unrest and distress migration" in those areas.
Massive transfer of agricultural and forest land for development and infrastructural projects has created "rural unrest and distress migration" in those areas, a high-level panel has found.
The committee on State Agrarian Relations and the Unfinished Task in Land Reforms has observed that the "major drivers" of such rampant conversions are decreasing incentives from agriculture, increasing pressure of industrialisation and urbanisation and changing aspirations of the people.
"The conversion of prime agriculture land is also a factor of decline of availability of foodgrains in the country. This has become a huge challenge as India needs to secure foodgrains for its more than 1.1 billion people," it added.
The report of the committee, which was set up by the Rural Development Ministry in 2007, was submitted through the ministry to the National Land Reforms Council, headed by prime minister Manmohan Singh.
"Findings indicate that about 7,50,000 acres of land have been transferred for mining and another 250,000 acres for industrial purposes during the past two decades," the committee said in its report.
There have been regular reports of extensive displacement of poor peasantry under special economic zones. "Widespread conversion of agriculture land for non-agricultural purposes is being observed throughout the country."
The committee noted that the distress was more evident in tribal areas.
"The tribals have been the biggest victims of displacement due to development projects. Though constituting only 9 per cent of the country's population, tribal communities have made up more than 40 per cent to the total land acquired so far."
The committee said Parliament has legislated the "most radical" of its Acts in the form of Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, applicable to nine of the states.
"All these states under Schedule-V have stringent laws protecting the corpus of tribal lands, which, however, continue to be subjected to a steady erosion," it observed.
The committee observed that there have been "disturbing trends" noticed in the recent times.
"PESA area constitute the main target of mining, industrial zone, protected forest reserve after denial of rights or access of local community," it said.
In Assam alone, about 3,91,772 acres of land have been transferred for development projects "without considering either the ecological consequences or other adverse effects on life and livelihood of the marginalised communities," the panel added.
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