Govt develops cold feet on land bank proposal

Govt develops cold feet on land bank proposal
Deccan Herald
The State government seems to be backing off from its professed commitment to infrastructure development, if its draft Infrastructure Policy is any guide.

The State government seems to be backing off from its professed commitment to infrastructure development, if its draft Infrastructure Policy is any guide.

A key proposal that would have committed the government to building a “land bank” -- a bank of plots of land that could be used for various infrastructure projects -- has been dropped from the draft.

The proposal to set up a land bank, already implemented in States like West Bengal, was aimed at taking up infrastructure projects by using land in government possession so that there is no delay in their implementation.

The bank was proposed in the light of roadblocks being faced by the government in acquiring land for various mega infrastructure projects.

In fact, it is because of the delay in land acquisition and disputes related to it, that several big projects like an interface for Devanahalli International Airport and the Mysore airport have suffered delay.

Stiff opposition

The concept invited stiff opposition from the State Revenue Department, which argued that it is unfair to acquire farmers’ land in advance. It has warned against misuse of such a concept, sources said.

“If the Government had taken the land in its possession in advance by setting up a land bank, these projects would have been implemented well on time,” sources in the State Infrastructure Development Department told Deccan Herald.

The draft policy only speaks of putting in place a “suitable mechanism” for speeding up land acquisition for these projects. It also notes that bringing in a “specific legislation” for this purpose is under the government’s consideration. The land bank proposal was based on a study by the Asian Development Bank in the country.

New law

The draft policy proposes a new law to ensure that land acquisition process is not as time-consuming as it is now. For this, the Infrastructure Department is in touch with various departments like Industries and the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board to formulate guidelines for the new law.

Official sources say the new policy mainly aims at attracting private participation in infrastructure projects.

Besides, the policy proposes several project-specific incentives/concessions to ensure active private partnership.



REVERSE GEAR

*Govt reportedly drops the idea of land bank

*Revenue Dept opposes the concept

*New policy moots law for easy land acquisition