Govt sets ‘double’ limit on agricultural land acquisition in GB Nagar

Gautam Buddh Nagar is all set to introduce new norms for agricultural land acquisition, distinct from those in other districts of Uttar Pradesh, say people familiar with the project.

The Yogi Adityanath government, they said, is considering increasing the current maximum limit for acquiring agricultural land for industrialisation in the district. This proposed exemption is aimed at ensuring that ongoing and proposed development projects, especially the upcoming international airport in Noida’s Jewar, are not starved of land till their completion.

Existing state law prohibits acquisition of more than 5% of the total agricultural or cultivable land in a district for industrial purposes. However, this limit is likely to be raised for Gautam Buddh Nagar due to acute land shortage, especially affecting the development of the Jewar airport.

A meeting on this matter was held at the level of the Secretary General a week ago.

“The construction of the Jewar airport has faced problems in availability of more land for the purpose due to the Land Acquisition Act, which prohibits acquisition of more than 5% of the total agricultural land area for a development project in a district,” said a senior revenue department official.

“The proposal to double the land acquisition limit from the current 5% to 10% for Gautam Buddh Nagar,” he added. He explained that the proposal was only for the district, which already had little agricultural land and a lot of industrialisation.

“However, a similar situation is taking place in Ghaziabad district and sooner or later the government will have to change the rules,” the official noted.

The proposed policy revision underscores the urgency with which the state government is addressing the problem of land shortage that threatens major infrastructure projects. The Jewar airport, touted as a key development for the region, requires a significant amount of land, necessitating this exceptional measure.

“This policy change highlights the need to strike a balance between protecting agricultural land and meeting the growing demand for industrial spaces, which is crucial for economic development and improving infrastructure in Uttar Pradesh,” the official said.

Notably, the then Akhilesh Yadav government had in July 2015 set the maximum limit for acquisition of agricultural land in any district at 5% of the total sown area. This was a correction to his government’s decision in December 2014 to set the limit at 20% for the entire state.