The Maharashtra government is set to oppose the Centre’s Land Acquisition Bill, which will remove the state’s role in acquiring land for industrial purposes.
Should the proposed central act come in, industrial houses will have to negotiate directly with the farmers and the owners of the land that they intend to acquire. The industrial houses will need the consent of 80% of the people whose land is to be acquired.
This will also be applicable to projects like infrastructure projects.
“We are going to oppose this Bill since we believe it will harm the interests of all concerned,” said a government official.
“First, we are not in favour of industrial houses going across to farmers directly to acquire land since that can lead to malpractices and arm-twisting,” he said.
The Centre decided to do away with the intermediary role of the state after the Singur, West Bengal, fiasco where protesting farmers were shot down by the police. The farmers were then protesting the acquisition of land by the West Bengal government for the Tatas the planned Nano project.
The farmers killing raised a hue and cry and the Centre soon said it would change the current Land Acquisition Bill to make it friendlier to those affected by such projects.
The bigger concern is the need to win over the consent of 80% of voters. “This effectively means that a small number of farmers can always halt any project. How are we to know if this protest is genuine or directed by vested interests?” the official asked.
There is another concern that any such new law will harm the state’s position as the leader in industry. By and large, Maharashtra farmers are comparatively prosperous and when their land is sought for projects, they demand a very high price, often forcing industrialists to look to other states. For instance, Maruti preferred Gujarat to Maharashtra since a large tract of land was available to it readily.
“It is here that the state does have a role to play. The state government needs to have a role in acquiring land and making it available for industrialists. That is how the state can play a role in pushing its industrialisation. If this bill goes through, we will be reduced to being spectators and won’t be able to help our state,” the official said.
Yet, the task won’t be easy. Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi had spoken out for the Bill that did away with the role of the state. For Maharashtra, the remedy might be worse than ailment, but how dos the state go against its own leader.
