Land Bill to be in Parliament soon: Ramesh

The Land Acquisition Bill, which seeks to strengthen owners' rights over land sought to be acquired for development, will be introduced in Parliament next week, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh indicated yesterday, saying he hoped for a smooth passage for the controversial measure.

"You score the maximum in the slog overs," he told reporters, using a cricketing metaphor, when asked whether the bill cleared by the union cabinet on Thursday will be brought in Parliament in the current winter session which ends on 30 December.

He said the bill making the consent of 80 per cent of people whose land is sought for private projects mandatory, is a "progressive" measure and the government hopes for support from all political parties. Insisting that the bill, which aims to replace the outdated British-era Land Acquisition Act, 1894, is a "balanced" one, Ramesh said all parties had already demanded that the old Act must be changed.

He said that the bill has ensured a balance between land users and investors and for the first time provided for compensation not only for land owners but also livelihood losers. He said that this is a concurrent legislation and the states will only have to improve upon it. "They cannot detract".

The proposed legislation has been rechristened as Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquistion, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill.

The cabinet has cleared the bill despite strong objections from some members of the National Advisory Council, headed by Sonia Gandhi, Congress president and chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance.