State may ape Gujarat land acquisition model

Punjab wants to emulate it. It’s now the turn of Maharashtra to evince interest. Realising the time-consuming process to acquire land as major hurdle in implementing an urban scheme, the state government is looking to model its own urban development policy after the Gujarat model.

“Land acquisition, as per the Gujarat model, does not involve any cash transaction or transfer of development rights. Furthermore, the procedure (to acquire land) is faster than the three four years it takes here to complete paper work and formalities,’’ said a senior government official, visibly impressed by the planning rules.

The government is considering the Gujarat model as a way to create more housing stock on vacant plots at the outskirts of major cities such as Mumbai and Pune.

Under the Gujarat Town Planning scheme, lands of different owners is pooled together and after planning the same is re-distributed in reconstituted plots after deducting the land required for open spaces, social infrastructure, services, housing for the weaker section and street network. While 40 per cent of the land in the area is earmarked for social infrastructure, the owners are allowed to either develop or sell the balance 60 per cent of land.

“The process enables the local planning authority to develop the commonly pooled land without forcing the land owners to sell it to the government at cheap rates. It is also a transparent process that facilitates freedom of design and control on growth and development,’’ said the official.

Acknowledging it is one of the suggestions being discussed in the new housing policy (for township development), principal housing secretary S Kshatriya said, “The Gujarat model is good and has been successfully implemented.

It is important to note that people also come forward to pool their land. It is a win-win situation for them since land owners also benefit as land prices shoot up as the area gets developed.’’

Under the Gujarat model, from the 40 per cent land ‘pool’, 20 per cent is earmarked for development of road network, five-eight per cent for garden and lake developments, another five-eight per cent for construction of houses for economically weaker sections, and the remaining five-eight per cent is auctioned by the urban development authority.

Money raised from the auctioned land helps cover infrastructure development expenses like the cost of laying of roads, gardens, lakes, and flyovers.