The Supreme Court judgement this past week restoring land taken over by the West Bengal Government in Singur in 2006 to the displaced farmers — some 1,000 acres — is something to ponder over. It is appreciable that the Apex Court took cognizance of the plight of the poor landholders. At the same time, the issue needs to be analysed from a wider perspective as well.
Importantly, we cannot lose sight of the problems that governments face today in pushing infrastructural and other essential projects due to scarcity of land availability in several parts of the country. The terrible ever increasing population of India is making the situation worse with passing time.
An industry can be dispensed with, but there is a crying need for land for the functioning of several vital sectors. The requirement for land needs to be addressed as well in matters of essential life-supporting systems. A semblance of balance is called for vis-a-vis projects and land acquirement.
The apex court order, that came a decade after the issue cropped up, is a victory at the personal and political level for WB chief minister Mamata Banerjee and a let-down for the Opposition CPI(M). A former Left Front government headed by Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had forcibly taken over large stretches of cultivable land for an ambitious Nano car project initiated by Tata.
With the Supreme Court order now reversing a high court order, Banerjee has been proven right. This is bound to boost her political clout, while the CPI(M) has taken a hit, adding to its discomfiture following two successive electoral drubbings the party got in the 2011 and 2016 assembly polls.
At the same time, it must also be noted that the blocking of the car project following the landholders’ agitation — with Banerjee’s support — had seen Tata transplanting its car project from West Bengal to Gujarat. Some claim this single incident had the state’s bad reputation of it being anti-industry further reinforced.
It is common knowledge that the Communists had, in the past, undercut the state’s industrialisation process by way of encouraging a militant trade union movement. Reckless actions, strikes demanding fulfillment of unreasonable demands of workers, and high-handedness perpetrated on company managements in the 1970s and 80s had resulted in a situation in which there was a mass shifting of industries from Calcutta to other states.
Both Calcutta and West Bengal fell on bad days and the downward drift of the state’s economy continued for the full duration of the Left Front government. In between, an attempt was made by Bhattacharjee to see reason and reverse the trend, as was reflected in his Singur initiative.
This backfired due again to high-handedness of a different kind. This time, it came directly from the government apparatus, putting the farmers at the receiving end. Undoubtedly the poor need to have a space to live as also cultivable land should be left with the farmers to increase farm production.
At the same time, what is also important is that governments reserve lands to the maximum quantum possible and acquire more to create land banks. This need be done in ways that would not hurt the interests of farmers or agriculture.
Coastal areas are prone to cyclones, oceanic turbulence and seaside land erosion. Often situations have arisen of people needing to be shifted from coastal belts to safer places. Land is needed for their rehabilitation.
Projects such as rail lines and irrigation canals and water reservoirs also displace habitations. But where to find land for resettlement has been a big question in recent times. Some 50 years hence, there is every indication that such will be the growth in population that there would be no land left for even essential projects such as setting up of a pharma industry.
They are life-sustaining industries and cannot be dispensed with. With an explosion of vehicles, roads need be widened. Garbage disposal is another major requirement which needs large stretches of land. India is yet to effectively tackle this problem, and much ground needs to be covered, literally so.
A comprehensive 360 degree approach is vital when it comes to acquiring and preserving land for future use. Protecting the interest of farmers as also the needs of the nation in other spheres requires seeking out of a balanced approach which is of essence.