3 weeks ago
NITI Aayog urges easier land acquisition to attract industry investment
India wants more factories and businesses so more people can have jobs.
But building a factory needs land, and getting land in India is very hard.
A special government office called NITI Aayog says India needs to make buying land for projects easier.
Mr. Ashok Kumar Lahiri, a leader at NITI Aayog, told a meeting that getting land should be simpler.
A rule from 2013 says people who give up their land must get a lot of money, like four times the land's price in villages.
That rule also asks most families who own the land to say yes before it can be taken.
These rules are meant to be fair to farmers, but they also make building projects very slow.
The state of West Bengal did not like the new rule for a long time.
Its new leader, Suvendu Adhikari, wants to help give land for factories, but there is no clear plan yet.
Some officials worry it will still be hard because many people in Bengal own only small pieces of land.
NITI Aayog vice-chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri said India must ease land acquisition to attract more industry and investment, speaking at NCAER 'India Policy Forum 2026'.
Lahiri said structural factor market imperfections, especially in land and capital, and legal challenges are holding up investment projects.
The 2013 Right to Fair Compensation Act, which replaced the 1894 Act, pays four times market value in rural areas and twice in urban areas and requires consent from 70-80% of affected families.
West Bengal, which rejected the 2013 Act under Mamata Banerjee, now has a new Suvendu Adhikari government keen to provide land for industry, though no firm policy exists yet.
A senior bureaucrat said the 2013 Act is unlikely to work in Bengal due to small land holdings and warned the direct purchase policy could face unwilling sellers, calling the 1894 Act robust.
The 2013 law was introduced after setbacks over land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram during the UPA government's tenure.
- Who
- NITI Aayog vice-chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri, the new West Bengal government led by Suvendu Adhikari, and a senior state bureaucrat.
- What
- A call to ease land acquisition to boost industry and investment, highlighting impediments in the 2013 Land Acquisition Act.
- Where
- India, with particular focus on the challenges of land acquisition in West Bengal.
- When
- Thursday, at the NCAER 'India Policy Forum 2026'.
- Why
- Structural impediments in land and capital, including legal challenges, are holding up investment in industrial and infrastructure projects.
Faster land acquisition for development
Protecting landowners and fair compensation
The 2013 Act vs. developmental speed
Faster land acquisition for development
Easier, faster land acquisition is vital to boost industry and investment; the more democratic 2013 Act slowed down development and legal challenges remain a major impediment.
Protecting landowners and fair compensation
The 2013 Act made the process more democratic and participatory, with enhanced compensation (four times market value in rural areas, twice in urban) and consent requirements protecting affected families.
West Bengal's land acquisition approach
Faster land acquisition for development
The new Suvendu Adhikari government is keen to help provide land for industry and infrastructure projects and has adopted a direct purchase policy.
Protecting landowners and fair compensation
A senior bureaucrat warned the 2013 Act is unlikely to succeed in Bengal where land holdings are much smaller, and the direct purchase policy could hit a roadblock if land sellers are unwilling.
Key facts
- Speaker
- Ashok Kumar Lahiri, NITI Aayog vice-chairman
- Event
- NCAER 'India Policy Forum 2026'
- Replaced law
- Land Acquisition Act of 1894 (scrapped by UPA government)
- New law
- Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
- Compensation
- Four times market value in rural areas; twice market value in urban areas
- Consent required
- 70% of affected families for PPP projects; 80% for private company projects
- West Bengal stance
- Rejected under Mamata Banerjee; new Adhikari government keen but no firm policy yet
- Prior setbacks
- Singur and Nandigram land acquisition controversies
Quotes
Ashok Kumar Lahiri
Vice‑chairman of NITI Aayog, Indian economic think tank
“Land acquisition for not only industrial projects but even government-sponsored infrastructure projects suffer several impediments, including legal challenges.”
telegraphindia.com
“The factors holding up investment in India are mostly structural. Factor market imperfection, especially in land and capital, is a major impediment.”
telegraphindia.com
Sources
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