The national Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement bill (LARR), 2011, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, has been now referred to a Parliamentary standing committee chaired by BJP MP Sumitra Mahajan. Rural Development minister Jairam Ramesh said that if the parliamentary committee gives its report prior to the winter session, it could be passed in both Houses. The bill seeks to replace the 117-year-old Land Acquisition Act. Its underlining principle was that land acquisition and rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) need to be “seen necessarily as two sides of the same coin... R&R must always, in each instance, necessarily follow upon acquisition of land. Not combining the two within one law, risks neglect of R&R.” The proposed act is to come into effect retrospectively, to include those projects where compensation has not been made under the existing act, and where possession has not been taken. Sandip Das explains.
* What previous laws govern acquisition? What attempts to formulate a fresh law have been made?
* What previous laws govern acquisition? What attempts to formulate a fresh law have been made?
In its earlier attempt to replace the 1894 Act, the UPA passed two separate bills — the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill and the Resettlement and Rehabilitation Bill — in February 2009, after which both the bills lapsed following the Rajya Sabha’s inability to pass them. However, the LARR law will not supersede 16 other Central laws for land acquisition. Sections 97 and 98 of LARR say that it “shall be in addition to” and “shall not apply” to existing Central laws governing acquisition for specific sectors like mining, SEZs, etc.
