AGARTALA, July 18 (TIWN): Chief Minister Manik Sarkar addressing the recent NITI Aayog meeting on Modi’s new land bill at New Delhi chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “The state cannot afford to support the attempt of the Union Government to amend the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 on most of the issues at this moment.” Sarkar said that the Government Amendments claim that it would ensure Mandatory Employment for Farm Labour. However, this actually dilutes the provisions of the Principal Act where there was the possibility of employment for the dependents on land including agricultural workers, share-croppers, landless, artisans and other rural workers. The provisions of the Principal Act regarding the affected families should remain. The option of land for land would be explored in addition to such employment and all social security benefits must accrue to the affected. The option of a one-time payment of a lump-sum to the affected family or an annuity must also be provided. The amendments provided for the expansion of Industrial corridors to include up to 1 km on either sides of the designated road or railway line for such industrial corridor.

Sarkar in this regard said, “We are of the opinion that this will open up vast agricultural land for potential acquisition. This is only aimed to help the land mafia and real estate speculators.” 

Adding he said that it will displace millions of people and deny them their main source of livelihood. “It will also adversely affect the food security of the nation.”

Tripura CM demanded that the land acquired for industrial corridors should be based on the principle of quod est necessarium est licitumimplying only that much which is actually necessary is deemed legal.

The Amendments have substituted the words 'Private Company' with 'Private Entity'. A private entity is an entity other than a government entity, and could include a proprietorship, partnership, company, corporation, non-profit organisation, or other entity under any other law. This Amendment widens the scope of those who can grab land and will allow the Government to acquire land for all private entities. “Therefore, this proposed amendment cannot be accepted and agreed to,” Sarkar claimed.

He said, “Since the state has got very limited land available for cultivation, we do not have the luxury to convert any more agricultural lands for non-agricultural purposes and all-out efforts have been initiated mainly to make the state self-reliant with limited resources.”

However, Tripura CPI-M and its Left front government seek to strengthen the Act to benefit farmers and the rural poor, while the Modi Government aggressively pursues the line of helping business corporations at the cost of farmers and rural poor.  

The CPI-M claims that if the Government is so sure that this is in the interests of the farmers then why is it afraid of taking farmers’ consent? The fact is that there is mounting discontent and anger against the Land Bill across the country.