Sep-2011-National

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011
Bowing to agrarian States like Punjab and Haryana, the Government has introduced in the Lok Sabha an amended version of the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill 2011, deleting from it the previously proposed provision to impose a blanket-ban on the acquisition of multi-cropped, irrigated land.

The new Bill, which, as and when it is passed, will replace the 117-year old Act of 1894 and will allow acquisition of multi-cropped irrigated land as a “last resort”.

The Bill makes even the permission ‘as a last resort’ conditional by providing that an equivalent area of culturable wasteland would have to be developed if multi-crop land is acquired. In districts with net sown less than 50 per cent of the geographical area, not more than 10 per cent of the net sown area will be allowed to be acquired.

The Bill states that the law will apply when the government acquires land for its own use or with the ultimate aim of transferring it for use of private companies for stated public purpose or for immediate and declared use by private companies for public purpose.

The consent of 80 per cent project affected families would have to be obtained prior to acquisition and urgency clause has been limited to exigencies of national defence, security and rehabilitation following calamities.

The Bill also provides that any land, not used within 10 years for the purpose for which it was acquired, will be transferred to the States' land bank and upon every such transfer, 20 per cent of its appreciated value will be shared with the original land owner.

The Bill, for the first time, ensures a comprehensive compensation package for land owners and livelihood losers. It proposes that market value calculated for the land will be multiplied by a factor of two in the rural areas.

Solatium will also be increased up to 100 per cent of the total compensation. Where land is acquired for urbanisation, 20 per cent of developed land will be offered to the affected owners.

For SCs and STs affected by acquisition, protections have been given. The Bill envisages additional benefits of 2.5 acres of land to each affected SC/ST family; one-time financial assistance of Rs 50,000; 25 per cent additional rehabilitation/resettlement benefits for families settled outside the district.

Draft Mining Bill
In a landmark decision that will impact the entire mining and mineral-based industry in India, the government has announced an overhaul of the law governing the sector. The new framework will introduce a benefit-sharing regime while laying down the policy contours for leases given out by state governments. The changes are aimed at dealing with popular resistance to mining projects on the grounds of corruption and adverse social and environmental impact. The industry fears it will make mining unattractive in the country.

The government plans to repeal the existing Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and instead place a new Bill in Parliament in the Winter session. To tackle illegal mining, the Bill proposes punitive action, as well as creation of special courts at the state level for speedier disposal of cases.

It will also make it compulsory for all non-coal mining companies to share an amount equal to their royalty payment to State governments for the benefit of project-affected people. In the case of coal companies, the amount will be equal to 26 per cent of their profit. This will directly impact purely mining companies like Coal India, Sesa Goa and NMDC, as well as companies like Tata Steel, SAIL, NTPC and RPower that have captive mines associated with their projects. Besides, it will increase the cost of companies into the businesses of cement, aluminium and other mineral-based produce.

The industry had opposed the benefit-sharing proposal, saying it would squeeze their margins. In the case of coal, the effective rate of taxation will rise to 61 per cent from 43 per cent at present. On iron ore, it will increase to 55 per cent from 43 per cent.

Industry also sees the proposal would create problems for existing mines where affected persons are not easily identifiable. Besides, the increased revenues collected with District Mineral Development Fund will be frittered away as the absorptive capacity does not exist.

Though mining activities are controlled by the States, the Centre’s overarching legislation, MMDR Act, set the rules of the game.

Apart from compensating the project-affected people through profit-sharing and royalty, the new Bill also obligates mining companies to pay a Central cess equivalent to 2.5 per cent of excise or customs duty. The activities of an independent National Mining Tribunal and National Mining Regulatory Authority at the Central level, and the expenditure involved in the capacity building of the Indian Bureau of Mines would be met from the cess levy. Besides, there will be a State cess of 10 per cent of total royalty.

The Bill also had punitive provisions to prevent illegal mining. The new Bill would introduce a better legislative environment for attracting investment and technology into the mining sector.

Visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Dhaka
On September 6, 2011, India and Bangladesh signed a slew of agreements and resolved their long-standing boundary dispute, but failed to ink any water-sharing deal.

Upset at India backing out of the Teesta water-sharing treaty at the eleventh hour, following West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s refusal to endorse the accord, Bangladesh retaliated by holding back the big-ticket transit treaty that would have given the North-Eastern States in India easier and faster access to the rest of the country.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who arrived at Dhaka on a two-day visit, sought to calm down tempers in Bangladesh over the Teesta controversy by telling Sheikh Hasina that the two sides would continue discussions on water-sharing accords to reach a mutually acceptable, fair and amicable arrangement for the sharing of Teesta and Feni river waters.

Prime Minister Singh also announced that India would provide duty-free access to 46 textile “tariff lines” as requested by Bangladesh. He said the two countries would also improve border infrastructure that would facilitate Bangladesh’s exports to India and provide it greater opening to India and other neighbouring countries. India would supply bulk power to Bangladesh by connecting its national grids.

The outstanding issues addressed in the boundary accord include: un-demarcated land boundary in three sectors, viz Daikhata-56 (West Bengal), Muhuri River-Belonia (Tripura) and Dumabari (Assam); (ii) enclaves; and (iii) adverse possessions. The un-demarcated boundary in all three segments has now been demarcated. The status of 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh with a population of 37,334 and 51 Bangladesh enclaves in India with a population of 14,215 has been addressed. The issue of Adversely Possessed Lands along the India-Bangladesh border in West Bengal, Tripura, Meghalaya and Assam has also been mutually finalised.

Other highlights of the visit were: Agreement on development programmes, MoU on renewable energy, Pact on overland transit traffic between Nepal and Bangladesh, MoU on conservation of Sundarban, Protocol on conservation of Royal Bengal Tiger, Cooperation between Dhaka University and JNU, Delhi, Understanding on promoting fisheries, Cooperation between Doordarshan and Bangladesh TV, MoU between NIFT, New Delhi, and the BGMEA Institute of Fashion Technology, Bangladesh.

China warns against oil exploration in Vietnam
India and China appear to be on a collision course over Beijing’s objection to ONGC Videsh Limited’s (OVL) plans to undertake oil exploration in two Vietnamese blocks in the South China Sea.

“Our cooperation with Vietnam or any other country is always as per international laws, norms and conventions,” External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash told reporters here, virtually dismissing Beijing’s objection.

According to a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, China enjoyed indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea and, without directly referring to India, asked all countries to refrain from oil exploration in maritime areas offered by Vietnam.

New Delhi said the OVL had been in Vietnam for quite some time in offshore oil and natural gas exploration field and was in the process of further expanding its operations. Essar, a subsidiary of Essar Oil Ltd, has also been awarded a gas block in Vietnam.

India said it supported freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and hoped all countries would abide by the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

The Indian spokesman explained that cooperation in the field of energy, hydrocarbon and renewable energy was an important facet of India-Vietnam relations. Of the nearly 400 million dollars worth of investments by India in Vietnam, the OVL alone had made investments to the tune of about 225 million dollars.

India’s stand is apparently guided by Vietnam’s claim that it had the rights over the two blocks under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Seas. With claims over the entire South China Sea, China is engaged in running disputes with several members of ASEAN and Japan. China and Vietnam, besides the Philippines, had a major spat over the issue recently after Chinese maritime vessels stopped exploration activities in the waters they claims as theirs