Compensating project-affected-families: An examination of alternatives

The empirical study has obtained insights into the expenditure patterns of cash compensation and the desired constituents of compensation package by the affected landowners in a linear project in peri-urban area of Gurugram district in Haryana. The study concludes that monetary compensation is apportioned between the twin heads of immediate consumption needs and income generating assets, though, the percentage spent under each category is influenced by the geographical location and the sociological attributes of communities. A heterogeneous mix of compensation options was found to elicit greater acceptance among the affected landowners. The individual compensation choices are ascribable to factors such as education, age, size of land holdings, income level, extent of awareness, and access to information. The findings of the study underscore the need to diversify the compensation choices incorporated in The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013 to optimize the post-acquisition outcomes for the project-affected-families. The paper recommends the adoption of land pooling policy for land aggregation in urbanizing areas to assure high economic return to participating title holders from the serviced parcel of land returned to them through its monetization or utilization for commercial purposes.