Haryana revises acquisition policy to placate farmers

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TNN, Nov 4, 2010, 04.18am IST

GURGAON/ CHANDIGARH: The Haryana government announced its revised land acquisition policy on Wednesday to placate angry farmers and expedite the process.

Chief Bhupinder Singh Hooda announced that the minimum floor rate had been nearly doubled to increase compensation. Affected land owners will be given government jobs. The government has also introduced a special financial incentive for those owners who agree not to challenge the acquisition. The changes came into effect from September 7.

As expected, Hooda announced the highest compensation for land owners of Gurgaon. Under the innovative concept of no litigation incentive, land owners will get Rs 72 lakh per acre of land falling under the Gurgaon municipal limit. ''The new 20% incentive will be given to those land owners who give an undertaking not to go for litigation," a government release said. The revised MFR for Gurgaon land owners would be Rs 40 lakh per acre against the prevailing rate of Rs 22 lakh per acre.

Though officials claimed this would bring some relief, real estate consultants said that the actual market price is much more than the revised MFR. ''In the NCR districts where demand is high, land owners would prefer to sell the land to private players and challenge the government compensation in courts," said a consultant. According to the revised policy, the entire state has been divided into five zones. For land falling within the notified limits of Gurgaon municipal area, the MFR has been fixed at Rs 72 lakh per acre, including Rs 8 lakh as no litigation incentive.

Similarly, for land located within the notified limits of Faridabad and Panchkula municipality and areas falling outside the development plans of Gurgaon-Manesar Urban Complex, Sohna and Sonepat-Kundli urban complex, the MFR has been fixed at Rs 54 lakh per acre. This will include Rs 6 lakh as no litigation incentive. The areas which fall under the development plans of Bahadurgarh, Rohtak, Rewari, Dharuhera, Bawal, and Panipat towns, the MFR is Rs 45 lakh per acre, including Rs 5 lakh as no litigation incentive.

The government has also decided to increase annuity amount payable over 33 years, as well as its incremental annual hike, along with offer of bigger-size plots in case one's residential property is acquired. The affected farmers would also be offered industrial and commercial plots keeping in view the location of the land and in case they are rendered landless after the acquisition.

The announcement has come at a time when farmers' groups are staging protests in different parts of the state, especially in Fatehabad district against the land acquisition for a proposed nuclear power plant.

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