Nitin Gadkari
His predecessor Gopinath Munde felt the act does not need any change, it needs to be properly applied
Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday hinted at amending the Land Acquisition Act in consultation with states as development projects worth `60,000 crore have been stuck due to delays in acquiring land. He said that the decision would be taken before the onset of the Parliament session.
Speaking to a news channel, the minister said, “We discussed (the Land Acquisition Act) with the states and after I have considered their suggestions I will take that to the Prime Minister, we will go by his decision (sic),” Mr Gadkari, who holds addition charge of rural development, said.
“Within 20 days... Before the Parliament session we will come to a conclusion because this is an issue which is related to the future development of this country,” Mr Gadkari said when asked about a timeline of bringing the amendments.
He said the problem in the road network is that road projects worth `60,000 crore are stuck as there are disputes in the Supreme Court and high courts, apart from many other problems. “Within one month my target is to find an equilibrium, we don’t want to destroy contractors and construction of roads should happen as early as possible,” Mr Gadkari said.
He said that his ministry has already solved problems for projects worth `20,000 crore. The progress on many highway projects is lagging due to delays in land acquisition. Mr Gadkari’s predecessor, the late Gopinath Munde, on the other hand, was of the view that the land acquisition act does not need amendments, but proper implementation.