Land Acquisition Act for government acquisitions only: Jairam Ramesh

MUMBAI: Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh dispelled fears of the Indian industry and said that the new Land Acquisition Act applies only to the land acquired by central and state government authorities for any public purpose, and there’s no bar whatsoever on purchase of private land.


“Industry must look beyond land acquisition by government and explore land purchase opportunities. In fact, 20 years from now, there should only be land purchases and no land acquisition,” Ramesh told reporters in Mumbai on Sunday.

Reiterating his stand that land acquisition should only be as a last resort, Ramesh said his ministry has been striving to improve land record management in the country and promoting transparency in land sales.

He said that the Rs 1,000-crore National Land Record Modernisation Programme is being implemented with emphasis on computerisation of land records, digitisation of maps and resurvey. The minister said Maharashtra has done well in this aspect but states like Haryana, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tripura have to do a lot of catching up. Ramesh said a bill seeking amendment to the Registration Act of 1908 has been introduced in Parliament, which when passed, will put all land sales and registration records in the public domain. “When transparency increases, it will become easier for corporates to purchase land,” he said.

Ramesh termed the new Act as ‘historic’. “The 1894 Act was undemocratic as it vested enormous discretionary powers in the hands of district collectors... The new Act is humane, its thrust is on rehabilitation and resettlement, and if any Act promotes welfare of tribals and marginal farmers, it is in national interest,” he asserted.