Farmers demand Haryana model

GREATER NOIDA: Farmers, at the kisan panchayat in Chhoti Milakh, have voiced the need for the UP state government to allow builders to negotiate over prices of land with them directly. “In Haryana, the state government acquires land only for public purposes. Builders are free to negotiate with farmers to buy land for residential purposes,” said Mehkar Singh, whose family lost 40 bighas of land to the state government.
Farmers complained that the change in land-use plan — from agricultural to residential — left them with no source of income.“We were forced to let go of our lands under the ‘urgency clause’. The government acquired land by promising jobs in industries that would be set up by foreign companies in the region,” said Tyagi, who gave up 72 bighas. “Now, our children can neither farm because we have no land, nor can they avail of jobs because there aren’t going to be any industries.”
“We demand around Rs 2.5 lakh extra compensation per bigha of land acquired,” said Dushyant Nagaar, a farmer leader at the forefront of the campaign. “We also want compensation for the crop that we would have grown in the past three years since when our land was acquired.”
Besides, the “6% back-lease policy”, under which land acquired by the government is given back to the villagers after developing, ensured builders got the best plots, allege farmers. “The Greater Noida authority is allotting plots under this policy in areas where roads and lanes are narrow and unfit for any use,” said Chaman Nagaar of Roja Yakudpur, whose family lost around 45 bighas. “The best portions are always reserved for the builders.”
As of now, villagers say they have no land, no jobs and no roof over their heads. “We are four brothers and we have lost around 100 bighas of family land. With the meagre compensation that has been paid to us, we cannot afford even four flats for us brothers in any of these projects,” said Dharmendra Yadav of Itehda village.
The Supreme Court verdict quashing land acquisition by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority in Sahberi village has rattled builders here too. Speakers at Sunday’s panchayat said builders had been sending agents from house to house since the verdict, asking villagers to forfeit the back-lease land and take additional compensation instead directly from builders.
“The additional compensation per bigha that builders are offering us is very meagre,” said Satish Yadav of Itehda village.
Demanding a revamped land acquisition policy, villagers sought that the government include those families whose land had been acquired before 2010. “The rehabilitation policy should also contain provisions for landless labourers and rural artisans whose lives are intrinsically linked to the farm economy,” said Manvir Singh Bhati, a farmer leader.