The Land Acquisition Act of 2013 is an Indian law that governs the government or other authorised entities’ acquiring land for public purposes. This Act provides a legal framework to ensure that individuals get fair compensation and rehabilitation for the landowners affected. This also promotes transparency in the land acquisition procedures.
Background
The Land Acquisition Act of 2013 has replaced the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. However, this law was criticised for lacking adequate rehabilitation and compensation measures which affected the landowners—however, the Act aimed to address the concerns created by the Land Acquisition Act 1894.
Objective
The primary objective of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013 is to facilitate the acquisition of land acquisition for public purposes. This includes industrial projects, infrastructural development, defence projects, and urbanisation. This Act focuses on two primary things.
· The balance between the protection of the rights
· The need to develop rights and interests affects the landowners and other affected people.
Key terms associated with the Act
There are several key terms associated with this Act. Some of these key terms are “ affected area”, “ affected families”, “ public purpose”, and “ consent”.
Public purpose refers to any project or activity that benefits the public. On the other hand, affected areas can be defined as land or property directly affected by the acquisition. This includes the land acquired along with any portion of the associated project. Affected families are the people whose properties are being taken and whose livelihood is being affected. Consent refers to the informed agreement of the affected families to the acquisition of the terms.
Consent and Social Impact Assessment
The Land Acquisition Act of 2013 emphasises obtaining the consent of the families affected in the process. In cases where private or public-private companies acquire the land, the consent of at least 70% and 80% of the affected families.
Moreover, the Act also focuses on a social impact assessment to evaluate the proposed acquisition’s environmental, social and economic impact.
Compensation and rehabilitation
This Act provides just compensation for the affected families and landowners. The compensation is determined based on various factors such as the value of assets attached to the land, market value or any potential loss of livelihood.
Process and transparency
This Act is very transparent and provides a detailed process for land acquisition, including notification, public hearings, and other opportunities for objections and claims.
The Act also promotes transparency by ensuring that the relevant information, extent, purpose and proposed compensation are made available to the affected people.
