HUDA Haryana using Land Acquisition Clauses to benefit Private Builders
The Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) had issued notification in June 2009 to acquire 1,417 acres for developing residential sectors — from 58 to 63 —and residential and three commercial sectors. However, in May, 2010, when the state issued the final notification for acquisition, most of these sold lands were “released”. It is alleged that the private builders also took advantage of the first notification.
In Gurgaon, there have been cases of builders directly buying land from farmers immediately after the government’s notification for its intent to acquire the land for the earmarked patches. Subsequently, these portions are either left out of the takeover process or land use is changed.There are cases of government even scrapping land acquisition process at the last stage. A major chunk of the notified land had been bought by private builders, pressuring ignorant farmers into selling under threat of assumed acquisition.
Six villages — Ullahwas, Behrampur, Kadarpur, Ghata, Badshapur and Medawas — in Gurgaon, which fall under the new Gurgaon-Manesar Development Plan, 2025, are latest examples of government’s ‘flawed’ acquisitive instinct. Locals said fearing lower compensation rates by the state, villagers sold about 550 acres to private builders.
While the Haryana government has been defending leasing out five acres of land for 33 years to the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust saying that the land has not been sold, its urban development wing seems to be using land acquisition clauses to benefit private builders.
In August, 2007, the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government had got itself muddied in another land acquisition deal. It had scrapped the acquisition of 912 acres in Manesar. The land was being acquired by Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation to set up residential, recreational and other public utilities besides developing housing facilities for labourers and industrial workers.
Government scrapping land acquisition process, Gurgaon, Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation, Haryana Urban Development Authority, HUDA Haryana, Land Acquisition Clauses, Private builders, Residential sectors in Gurgaon, Urban development wing
