13 Acts now out of new Land Acquisition Act will be amended

CHENNAI: Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh today said 13 acts, which were presently not under the purview of the yet to be notified new Land Acquisition Act, would be amended to the effect that the compensation and resettlement and rehabilitation would be at par with the new Act within one year.

"... However, what the Act states is that within one year of the new Act coming into place, i.e. by January 1, 2015, those acts, which are kept out of the new act, their compensation and RR (resettlement and rehabilitation) must be brought on par with the new act provision," Jairam Ramesh told reporters here.

The new Land Acquisition Act, which he hoped to notify by January 1, 2014, does not have under its purview 13 different acts, which dealt with land acquisition for various government projects including the national highways, power transmission and railways.

Replying to a query on whether the new Act would have an effect on the GAIL project, over which the Centre and Tamil Nadu governments are at loggerheads, after farmers opposed land acquisition for it, he said, " Government of India makes Act not for one scheme but for all schemes across the country."

Observing that he was aware that there should be one Act ideally for land acquisition, which governed all departments, he said "But, it is not possible. There are multiple ministries, multiple ministers. One ministry cannot have overriding powers on all ministries, then it will become dangerous."