Development-Induced Displacement, Rehabilitation and Resettlement in India ─ Current Issues and Challenges

Compulsory land acquisition and involuntary displacement of communities for a larger public purpose captures the tension of development in the modern state, with the need to balance the interests of the majority while protecting the rights of the minority. In India, informal estimates of involuntary resettlement are estimated to be around 50 million people over the last five decades, and three-fourths of those displaced still face an uncertain future.
Growing public concern over the long-term consequences of this has led to greater scrutiny of the rehabilitation and resettlement process, particularly for large development projects. This book examines a number of new policy formulations put in place at both the central and state levels, looking at land acquisition procedures and norms for rehabilitation and resettlement of communities. The book combines a theoretical analysis of the proposed regulatory framework with detailed case studies that examine the application of these norms in specific geographic contexts across the country. It brings together contributory analysis by some of the country’s most engaged administrators, academics, and activists in the field, and is a useful contribution to Development Studies.

Sakarama Somayaji heads the Relocation and Rehabilitation group within The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)’s Social Transformation Division. He has worked extensively on issues pertaining to the rehabilitation of project displaced people, including three years at the Council for Social Development in New Delhi, India.
Smrithi Talwar is a Fellow and Chief Coordinator of the Director General’s Office in The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). She has led a multi-disciplinary team of specialists in developing and implementing a long term rehabilitation strategy for project displaced people in Singrauli District, Madhya Pradesh.

Introduction 1. Development-induced displacement, Rehabilitation and Resettlement: current issues and challenges Sakarama Somayaji and Smrithi Talwar Part 1: Critical examination of India’s rehabilitation, resettlement and land acquisition normative framework 2. Land Acquisition Act, 1894: Historical overview of judicial interpretation Ram Mohan and M.V. Shiju 3. Rehabilitation and Resettlement of Displaced Persons: Acritical examination of the national policy and proposed bill K.B. Saxena 4. Thinking out of the Box – A Critique of the Land Acquisition Bill 2007 Vasudha Dhagamwar Part 2: Applicability of existing normative framework in specific jurisdictions (case studies) 5. Land Acquisition and Determination of Land Price: A critical appraisal of the existing and proposed normative framework as applied in Singrauli District, Madhya Pradesh Vivek Porwal and Shashi Singh 6. Compulsory Land Acquisition in Orissa: Policy and Praxis Sujit Kumar Mishra 7. Mining induced displacement: case of aluminium refinery in Andhra Pradesh Prajna Paramita Mishra and M. Gopinath Reddy 8. Whither National Policy on Displacement and Rehabilitation? A sociological perspective based on a case study from Karnataka Ganesha Somayaji and Ramesh Mangalekar 9. From Rice Bowl to Industrial Grazing Lands: compulsory land acquisition in Chhatisgarh Ramesh Chandra Sharma and Sheeba Choudhr 10. Development, Displacement and Rehabilitation: The context of tribes in central India Joseph Marianus Kujur 11. Appendix 1: Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007 12. Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2007