Govt is ready with Cabinet note on kinder rehab policy

These councils will draw up plans for “rich rehabilitation before displacement.” And no displacement through land acquisition can be taken up without a proper rehabilitation plan to which the state government has to stand as a guarantor. Also, local bodies, including the Panchayats, will vet the rehab plan.

States will have flexibility in implementing the rehabilitation plan. They can either choose to do it themselves or ask the project partners to conduct it themselves. States are only mandated to ensure rehabilitation.

The policy will be in the form of an executive order from the Centre. Rather than legislation, this order will have statutory backing as provided by the Constitution for subjects under the Concurrent list. It will be routed through the existing Land Acquisition Act.

The legal issue of providing statutory backing to this policy has been discussed with Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam and it was only after he gave his nod that the Cabinet note was circulated.

“We have consciously gone with the widest possible range of consultations on this before preparing the Cabinet note,” said Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh. “In fact, in addition to state governments, we have also consulted activists like Medha Patkar on this issue. We have tried to include all reasonable points from all quarters and sent it to the Ministries last week.”

The Ministries whose views have been specially asked for include Tribal Affairs, Forests, Water Resources, Surface Transport, Railways and Commerce. They are expected to get back with their suggestions within a fortnight. After factoring in this feedback, the final note will be brought before the Cabinet for approval.

The Centre will only have an advisory role, the onus for rehabilitation will fall on state governments.

While the final elements of the new policy will fall into place only after all Ministries send their feedback, as per the draft, its other key elements are:

• As part of the state rehabilitation council, state governments will appoint an officer not below the rank of District Collector as administrator for R&R. The council will be incharge of control, formulation, execution and monitoring of the rehab plan and will prepare a draft plan, acquire land and allot land. It will also undertake a survey of affected families within 90 days of the date of declaration of any project that requires displacement of families.

• Rehabilitation plan for project-affected families should be discussed and vetted by the local bodies (in panchayat Meetings or through Public Hearings). After 30 days, the council shall send the final plan to the state government. Resettlement activity shall begin 45 days after being published in the official gazette.

• The rehabilitation package will ensure rich rehabilitation by means of compensation in form of several options. These include: allotting a free house site to an affected family to the extent of loss of the area of acquired house but not more than 150 sq m of land in rural areas and 75 sq m in urban areas; allotting cultivable land to the extent of actual land loss subject to 1 hectare of irrigated land and 2 hectares of unirrigated land; employment for one person in the family of agricultural workers or a rehab grant equivalent to 750 days minimum agricultural wages.

• There will be a grievance redressal cell under the chairmanship of the R&R commissioner who will be a technical expert. This cell will be funded by the acquiring body.