Land Bill introduction stalled in LS following quota row

The controversial Land Acquisition Bill could not be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday following repeated adjournments over the issue of quota in government job promotion.

The bill was listed in Monday's supplementary of business for introduction, government sources said. They cited repeated disruptions by Samajwadi Party members on the issue of reservation as the reason for deferring the introduction of the bill. It is likely to be introduced on Tuesday, they said.

The bill was cleared by the Union Cabinet last week, making mandatory the consent of 80 per cent of people whose land is taken for private projects.

The revised bill also makes mandatory obtaining of consent of 70 per cent of the people whose land will be for acquired in the case of public-private partnership projects.

The bill, rechristened as Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, was finalised by the Rural Development Ministry incorporating the suggestion of United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who had asked the government to take the consent from 80 per cent land owners for purchase of land for the purpose of setting up industries.

Sources had said that Gandhi was not in favour of the Group of Ministers' proposal that the consent of two-thirds of "land losers" (from whom land would be purchased) was enough for acquiring land for industries and PPP projects.

The GoM had suggested that the consent clause be kept at 67 per cent for PPP projects and private projects. The government had constituted the GoM after some ministers voiced strong reservations against certain provisions of the bill at the Cabinet meeting.

Last week, Minister of State for Rural Development Lalchand Kataria had informed the Rajya Sabha that the government intends to introduce the official amendments to the Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011 in the Lok Sabha in the winter session.