Displaced farmers to play owners in SEZs

NEW DELHI: All that rhetoric over inclusive growth may finally acquire some teeth, thanks to the Nandigram and Singur controversies. The Union Cabinet is to consider a proposal that seeks to make farmers���whose lands are taken away for large-scale industrial projects���a partner in the equity harvest.

As per the proposal, if the company that takes over the land is unable to offer agricultural land in lieu, minimum agricultural wages for 750 days will have to be paid in addition to normal compensation for the land acquired. Also, if the acquirer is a private company and not a state agency, farmers stand to gain shares of the project at par worth 20% of the wages.

Proposals to these effects are being discussed for amending the rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) policy, likely to be considered by the Cabinet soon. Government sources said these sweeteners could clear the roadblocks holding up SEZ clearances.

Though the Centre already has an R&R policy, a new policy has been proposed to improve the compensation component for families displaced by any project. This has also become important in the wake of stiff resistance to large-scale acquisition of agricultural land, especially SEZs.

As per the proposals in the revised R&R policy, the land acquiring agency, whether a corporate entity or a government agency, would have to try to compensate the displaced family or individual by providing adequate land for farming and bear the entire cost of relocation.

If the displaced family has lost jobs, they would have to offer employment to one member of a nuclear family subject to availability.

Though the proposed R&R Policy would serve as model for projects requiring acquisition of large tracts of land, states would have the freedom to offer a better package promised in their own R&R policies.

In order to make the rehabilitation process more equitable, landless workers would get first preference for work involving construction of the industrial facilities or SEZs.

The land acquiring entity would also provide grant of Rs 10,000 per hectare for land development if the displaced family in provided wasteland. In case of agricultural land, this would be Rs 5,000 per affected family for agricultural production.

Emergency land acquisition by ministry of defence would be kept out of the proposed R&R package. However, the new policy would make it mandatory upon acquiring companies to build in the entire cost of R&R initiatives in the total project cost.