Economic
Times: New Delhi: Tuesday, 28 April 2015.
The land
acquisition law passed by the previous government may not be the villain of the
piece when it comes to stalled projects, according to data generated by a Right
to Information (RTI) query.
The Modi
government's determination to amend the land acquisition law in the teeth of
resistance from farmers and political parties has stemmed from the legislation's
apparent role in just this bringing projects across the country to a standstill.
But it
appears that only 8% of them have been stalled due to land acquisition
problems, according to data received from the finance ministry under the RTI
Act. The main reason is unfavourable market conditions followed by lack of
non-environmental clearances and a dwindling promoter interest.
The data,
accessed by RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak, showed 804 stalled projects in
February. An analysis of the 33-page list shows that lack of funds is the
number four reason and land acquisition the fifth for projects halting.
Of the 66
projects stalled over land acquisition, none of them are specifically for the
underprivileged or the weaker sections of society. Of the full list of 804,
only 11 are targeted projects, including five related to slum rehabilitation,
two for budget homes or low-cost housing, one to build residences for
indigenous groups and one is an old-age home. The number of luxury projects
stalled is 145.
These include
hotels and restaurants (75), shopping malls (28), multiplexes (five), golf
courses (two) and a racing track. The most projects stalled are in Maharashtra
(125) and Gujarat (63), followed by Bengal (55), Karnataka (52) and Telangana
(52).
The
government's amendment seeks to scrap the consent clause for acquiring land for
five sectors industrial corridors, public private partnership projects, rural
infrastructure, affordable housing and defence. The bill also exempts projects
in these five areas from social impact assessments and allows the purchase of
irrigated multi-cropped land and other types of agricultural land.
The 15 states
that have the most stalled projects include nine of the 10 Schedule V states,
which have a sizeable tribal population.
"This
underlines the importance of the consent clause," Nayak said. Almost 78%
of the projects are privately owned while 22% are with central or state
governments. The Economic Survey for 2014-15 had said stalled projects had been
"increasing at an alarmingly high rate in the last five years, and the
rate is much higher in the private sector".
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