A

PROJECT REPORT

ON

Diversion of Land and Its Procedure

SUBMITTED TO:

Dr. Kiran Kori (Faculty Land Laws)

SUBMITTED BY:

Anant Ekka

Sec. - A, Roll No. - 26

SEMESTER-VIII (B.A.L.L.B. Hons.)

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 15th February, 2017

HIDAYATULLAH NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY

Acknowledgements
First and foremost I would like to thank Dr. Kiran Kori, faculty Land Laws, Hidayatullah
National Law University, for creating opportunities to undertake such a valuable project. She
helped me in preparing the project through her aura and granting her precious time for the
consultation, discussion and giving suggestion over this project. She also helped me in
improving the perception regarding to the study of the topic in its vast resources and in a
broader way, clearing all the doubts about this project. Therefore, I would like to thank her
for all her efforts and cooperation which she conferred me.

I also owe my gratitude towards University Administration for providing me all kinds of
required facilities with good Library and IT lab, which helped me in making the project and
completing it. My special thanks to Library Staff and IT staff for equipping me with the
necessary data and websites from the internet.

I would also like to thank my dear colleagues who had helped me a lot creating this project
with their ideas and thoughts over the topic. They act as a motivating and guiding force to me
during the making of this project.

Anant Ekka

Roll No. 26

Semester- VIII (B.A.L.L.B. Hons.)

Table of Contents

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 Acknowledgements..... 2
Introduction........ 4
Research Methodology and Objectives....... 5
Diversion of land..... 6
Procedure of land diversion................. 9
Conclusion......... 10
Bibliography and Webliography........ 11

Introduction

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One of the important and yet less attended downsides of Indias major stride towards
economic development has been diversion of land and displacement of a large number of
people from the sociocultural milieu as well as the natural resources critical for their survival.
There is no systematic assessment of the magnitude and the complexities of displacement
faced by people in different situations, but a rough estimate suggests that nearly 20 million
persons may have been displaced owing to various planned development projects since the
1950s (Fernandes, 1994).

Apart from this sheer magnitude, the phenomenon has highlighted glaring discrepancies in
the way development has been perceived and rescue (compensatory) mechanisms have
actually worked. As a result, there has been a shift of resources from poorer to richer sections
of society. It is therefore imperative to evolve a framework, which not only seeks to recognise
the stakes of the displaced but also provides a mechanism that enables them to benefit fairly
from the processes of development.

The legal structure that governs land alienation and compensation in India is complex. While
policies pertaining to diversion of land from forest and agriculture to other uses seemed
conservative (and also conservationist), in practice they remained liberal and lacked
transparency. There is a lack of information sharing on the rationale for the diversion of land
and the basis and extent of compensation. The process of diversion of land from the forest or
agriculture sector is the outcome of a congruence of various vested interests those of the
state, the private sector (often multinational corporations) and the local elites. Globalisation
has fostered these processes further through liberalisation of the land use policies.

Research Methodology

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This research project is descriptive in nature because it uses descriptive language for the
explanation of various concepts explained in this topic.

Objectives
1. To study about diversion of land.
2. To study about the procedure of land diversion.

Diversion of land

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Land Diversion happens when a land once set aside for a particular purpose is being used in a
different way (i.e. industrial land to residential). One of the important and yet less attended
downsides of Indias major stride towards economic development has been diversion of land
and displacement of a large number of people from the sociocultural milieu as well as the
natural resources critical for their survival.

Land is in limited supply and is the critical factor of production for almost all kinds of
economic activities as well as for human settlement (Shah et al, 2005). It is therefore essential
that its allocation across different economic activities and uses is based on sound theoretical
premises, combined with the ground realities of multiple objectives some of which often go
beyond the narrowly defined goals of economic growth per se. In a predominantly agrarian
economy such as India, the entitlement to livelihood and access to factors of production,
especially land, are important objectives that need to determine allocation of land across
different uses and users. The allocation mechanism must not only address the needs of
economic activities or sectors (including housing) but also look into the specific needs of
various ecosystems, regions and communities.

One of the most important problems facing land use policy in India is the asymmetry between
the sectoral composition of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and peoples dependence on land-
based activities to derive a basic livelihood. Whereas the primary sector accounts for about 24
percent of GDP, it provides employment (though partial) to nearly 60 percent of the people
and utilises nearly 64 percent of the total geographical area (including forest). On the other
hand, the secondary and tertiary sectors account for 76 percent of GDP and use only 8 percent
of the geographical area of the country.

Given the heavy dependence on the primary sector for employment and livelihoods, policies
were, until recently, fairly conservative with respect to diversion of land from agriculture or
forests to other uses, such as development of infrastructure (including irrigation), industry
and mining and urbanisation. While this is valid, given the agrarian nature of the Indian
economy, this approach is facing severe pressure, owing to increasing demand from the
rapidly growing sectors (such as industry, mining and infrastructure). Additionally, the
substantially large increase in population has led to increased urbanisation.

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The conservationist, hence conservative, policies pursued so far are prohibitive rather than
proactive in terms of evolving a rationale for allocating land for the rapidly growing sectors
other than the primary sector, which contribute more than three-fourths of Indias GDP. But
this does not mean absence of diversion to other uses. In fact, these policies have given rise to
processes and mechanisms that have proved counterproductive to the very cause of
conservation.

Land use and diversion in India: Estimates and issues

Increasing demand from some of the rapidly growing sectors (like industry, services and
infrastructure), along with mounting demographic pressure in the country, has led to

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conversion of land from the primary sector (i.e. agriculture, pastures, forest) to alternate uses.
The proportion of area under non-agricultural uses more than doubled between 1950 and
2001, from 3.29 to 7.86 percent (see Table 1). Besides this, more than 6 percent of the area is
still in the category of barren and uncultivable land. Over time, the area under the two
categories of land use has declined from 16.7 percent to 14.1 percent.1

Table 1: Changes in land use patterns in India (%)

An important feature of the changing land use pattern in India is that only a part of the
increase in land under non-agricultural uses seems to have come from the category of barren
and uncultivable land. The evidence suggests that a large part of the land diverted for
irrigation, mining, infrastructure and urban industrial use in peri-urban areas has come from
forests, pastures and cultivable land. Initially, diversion from primary sector uses was
compensated for by a net increase in land under cultivation, a large part of which may have
come from cultivable wasteland, besides settlement of forest land for agriculture.
Unfortunately, this kind of expansion does not seem to be possible any more. The result
therefore is a net decline in cultivated land, as observed recently.

Unfortunately, there is no systematic estimate of the extent of land diversion for different
uses. The land use data also fail to capture the real picture owing to limitations in the system
of land records and illegal (benami) transactions, especially in peri-urban areas. It is not
merely about the magnitude of land being diverted; the issue is which land, at what cost and

1 Note: Figures as percentage share of total reported area. Source: Directorate of

Economics & Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture.

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with what kind of compensation package? In the case of peri-urban areas, the land is most
likely to be under cultivation at the time of diversion.

Procedure of land diversion

1. Fill up application in Form A with court fee worth 50 paise.

2. Affidavit.

3. Two copies of recent record of right (Record entry) and sketch map of the subject
land duly signed by the Tehsildar and Patwari.

4. In case proposed land is jointly recorded, NOC of all the adjacent co-tenants is
required.

5. 3 (three) copies of site map in the scale (1cm:20 Mtrs) of the area intended to be
diverted, marked on the entire survey number with dimension, adjoining survey
numbers, land marks, means of access etc.

6. 5 Nos. Photograph of the proposed site with signature of the applicant with date.

7. Written detailed justification for the required conversion.

8. Submit form to the Sub Divisional Officer or to the Tehsildar's Office in area along
with all other requirements.

9. The SDO will examine your proposal, and once all formalities are completed the
officer will issue order of diversion.

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 Conclusion

In this context, that various economies have tried to evolve a strategy for land use and its
allocation over different sectors. The most important thread underlying the policy approaches
across various economies is recognition of market failure in allocating land across different
economic activities, especially the shift away from the primary sector, where intrinsic value
of land as a natural resource is still retained. Obviously, marginal productivity measured in
terms of monetary value is not the appropriate indicator for determining the diversion of land
from the primary to other sectors in the economy.

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 Webliography

1. https://www.wikiprocedure.com/index.php/Chhattisgarh_-
_Apply_for_Division_of_Land
2. http://gsplanet.ac.in/student-resources/current-affairs/english/item/1580-land-
diversion-in-india
3. http://www.oneindia.com/2006/12/15/diversion-of-agricultural-land-for-non-
agricultural-purposes-1166177304.html

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