The Mamata Banerjee government wants the Centre to include in the draft National Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill provisions of the Bengal’s land ceiling law, which caps holdings by industry at 24.88 acres. State cabinet sources also said the government would not accept any special economic zone (SEZ) and ask the Centre make its position clear on such enclaves, which typically require large tracts, in the bill. The recommendations were...

IF YOU walked down the streets of Jantar Mantar in New Delhi between 3-5 August, you would see what TV cameras aren’t putting out on primetime news. Thousands of farmers from Jhabua in Madhya Pradesh to Rohtak in Haryana. On protest. Against the systematic grabbing of their land by various state governments across the political spectrum. On one side of the road, on large green carpets, are about 3,000 farmers,...

-Live Mint   Finally, a serious roadblock in the country’s march to industrialization may be removed soon. The Union ministry of rural development has unveiled a draft National Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement (LARR) Bill. Once a law, LARR could potentially end arbitrary land acquisitions under the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. Any well-functioning market gives clear signals and prices are market-driven. The 1894 law with its ill-defined “public purpose” clause...

-AP   Rural America now accounts for just 16 percent of the U.S. population, the lowest ever. The latest 2010 census numbers hint at an emerging America where, by mid-century, city boundaries become indistinct and rural areas grow ever less relevant. Many communities could shrink to virtual ghost towns as they shutter businesses and close down schools, demographers say. More metro areas are booming into sprawling megalopolises. Barring fresh investment that could...

A host of steel-manufacturing units are keen to set up plants in Karnataka, and all want captive mines. SOUTH KOREA'S Posco is not the only steel-maker keen to do business in Karnataka. The State's estimated 9,000 million tonnes of good-quality iron ore reserves, which is the second largest in India, the State government's assurances on a smooth land acquisition process, the availability of water and the promise of speedy regulatory clearances...