Parliamentary panel "ignoring" farmers, adivasis, while seeking representation on land acquisition law

Gujarat farmers protest in Mithi Virdi

By A Representative
Thirty-odd Gujarat-based civil rights organizations, called by non-political farmers' body Jameen Adhikar Andolan Gujarat (JAAG), have taken strong exception to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), formed to collect suggestions into controversial amendments to the Land Acquisition Act (LAA), 2013, for refusing to directly talk to the oustees affected by different projects across India.
In one of the best representations to the JPC made public in the recent past, the joint representation to the JPC said, a formal process of public consultation should have been undertaken "via public hearings, oral submissions etc." because most of the farmers affected by projects cannot make written representations.
"You will appreciate that written submissions will be made by only a limited number of individuals and organisations. Farmers, adivasis, the rural population and other affected poor people who are the primary stakeholders in this process would be at a considerable disadvantage where written submissions have to be made", the submission said.
They said, this was particularly important as LAA 2013 or Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 was "the culmination of decades of struggle by affected people against arbitrariness, injustice and something that – to the affected people – must certainly appear to be a land grab."
"The process of enacting this legislation was also unprecedented", they insisted, adding, inputs were given large sections, political and non-political, academia and practitioners, "thus making it perhaps one of the most in-depth, participatory and inclusive legislative processes ever."
Pointing out that the argument for coming up to amend LAA 2013, that land acquisition for industry was getting delayed is totally wrong, the JAAG-led representation said, "Studies have shown that over 92 per cent of the in-pipeline projects were held up due to reasons other than land acquisition-related issues."
"Clearly, implementation of the Act was not even initiated/attempted and the conclusion was reached that ‘it was unimplementable’.", it said, adding, "The amendments in the Ordinance make a mockery of the ‘consent’ requirement, the heart and soul of the principal Act and the demand over decades by affected people."
What is worse, the representation said, even "temporary acquisitions are also exempt from consent requirements which in our view is altogether unjust." It added, "In our opinion, consent (of the affected families and the gram sabhas) must be mandatory for all acquisitions – government or otherwise, temporary or permanent."
"It is also noteworthy that in the last one year the economy has not shown any signs of revival. In such a situation the question that arises is: what will the government do with the land thus acquired?", wonders the representation, adding, "Surely, the Government would not want to facilitate a process whereby land becomes an easy destination to park the black money fuelling speculative land markets."
Pointing towards how the new proposed amendment is pro-corporate, the representation said, it removes the earlier restriction to “companies registered under the Companies Act 2013” and broadens the scope of acquisition. It empowers the government to acquire it for anyone or anything as per its will, choice or discretion."

Comments

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

Love letters in a lifelong war: Babusha Kohli’s resistance in verse

By Ravi Ranjan* “War does not determine who is right—only who is left.” Bertrand Russell’s words echo hauntingly in our times, and few contemporary Hindi poets embody this truth as profoundly as Babusha Kohli. Emerging from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, Kohli has carved a unique space in literature by weaving together tenderness, protest, and philosophy across poetry, prose, and cinema. Her work is not merely artistic expression—it is resistance, refuge, and a call for peace.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

The price of silence: Why Modi won’t follow Shastri, appeal for sacrifice

By Arundhati Dhuru, Sandeep Pandey* In 1965, as India grappled with war and a crippling food crisis, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri faced a United States that used wheat shipments under the PL-480 agreement as a lever to dictate Indian foreign policy. Shastri’s response remains legendary: he appealed to the nation to skip one meal a day. Millions of middle-class households complied, choosing temporary hunger over the sacrifice of national dignity. Today, India faces a modern equivalent in the energy sector, yet the leadership’s response stands in stark contrast to that era of self-reliance.

Echoes of Vietnam and Chile: The devastating cost of the I-A Axis in Iran

By Ram Puniyani The recent joint military actions by Israel and the United States against Iran have been devastating. Like all wars, this conflict is brutal to its core, leaving a trail of human suffering in its wake. The stated pretext for this aggression—the brutality of the Ayatollah Khamenei regime and its nuclear ambitions—clashes sharply with the reality of the diplomatic landscape. Iran had expressed a willingness to remain at the negotiating table, signaling a readiness to concede points emerging from dialogue.

India’s green energy push faces talent crunch amidst record growth at 16% CAGR

By Jag Jivan* A new study by a top consulting firm has found that India’s cleantech sector is entering a decisive growth phase, with strong policy backing, record capacity additions and surging investor interest, but facing mounting pressure on talent supply and rising compensation costs .

Search This Blog