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Since the pre-independence era, the government of Assam has implemented many schemes to help those who lost their land due to floods. The provision of land to the people who lost their homes in the floods has remained a top priority in land provision and settlement even in the post-independence era. Let us look at the proposals made to those who lost their land in floods in Assam’s land policy before and after independence.
According to the Land Settlement Policy of 1942, “However, there are sections of immigrants who have established settlement claims, which, if not strictly enforceable by law, are more or less less equal, and these are the first the Government proposes to settle in the colonial territories. They may be distinguished into – (a) those who were formerly granted a settlement, but whose lands have been destroyed by the Brahmaputra or other rivers.”
The land settlement proposal of 1945 included two important recommendations – “(a) A land settlement scheme under the available wasteland settlement scheme will be started immediately in the 4 lower valley districts. Assam along with the landless people of all classes of the state. praying for lands, applications from those of them from outside the state being entertained, if they entered the state before 1st January 1938; (b ) Every landless person, who has lost his land due to erosion or military necessity, will get preferential distribution of lands under the plan.”
According to the 1958 agricultural land specification, “In general the surplus available agricultural land is insufficient to meet the needs of the individual farmer, the future settlement of the agricultural purpose should be made as far as possible.” in collaboration with farmers. When the settlement of individuals should be given the area should normally be limited to 8 bighas to 12 bighas according to the fertility of the soil. Providing individual preference solutions should be provided as follows:
“(a) Residents who have been rendered landless by floods, river erosion or earthquakes whose lands have been claimed or acquired by the government for public benefit. (b) Landless farmers and displaced persons. (c) Residents who have been displaced without land due to river erosion and holding reserves with the permission of the Deputy Governor. Such people cannot be evicted unless other land can be provided.”
In the 1989 land plan, the government promised to give priority to the following people in the distribution and settlement of general agriculture:
(a) Landless farmers who have been rendered landless by floods, erosion, earthquakes, or other natural disasters. (b) People who have been rendered landless due to acquisition of their land for public benefit. (c) Landless local farmers. Preference will be given to farmers belonging to Scheduled Tribe (ST), Schedule Caste (SC) and MOBC communities. (d) Landless former labourers.
Now come to the land plan announced by the government of Assam in 2019. According to the said land policy, the following groups will get preference wherever possible while getting general agricultural land in rural areas:
(a) Indigenous land owners who have been rendered landless by floods, erosion, earthquakes and other natural disasters. (b) Landless indigenous farmers. Preference will be given to indigenous landless farmers belonging to Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes and OBC/MOBC communities. (c) Indigenous widows who do not have wage-earning sons or daughters (except married daughters) provided such widows wish to take up agriculture as a source of livelihood. (d) Unmarried indigenous women, disabled and former workers who are willing and able to take to agriculture for their livelihood.
In the 2019 system, rural areas are defined as areas outside 15 km outside the municipal corporation area of Guwahati, 5 km outside other towns in the district and 3 km outside the revenue city.
According to article 1.1 of this system, the settlement is paid for land owned by the government and transferred to indigenous farmers who do not have land to practice in general if the person granted uses the land for a period of three years in accordance with the conditions of allocation. However, such settlements will be approved only after payment of government fees.
Now let’s talk about the goodwill of the Assam government. The people who were displaced by the flood have been living in deserts, forests, government-owned land, VGR, PGR, land owned by religious organizations, etc., because the government of Assam has completely failed to rehabilitate them.
There are many plans to give land to these people, but in reality, the problem is not at all less. Here is a picture of how the Assam government is trying to sort out such individuals through schemes.
In 2015, the government of Assam introduced a scheme called, “Special Minister’s Special Scheme for Rehabilitation of Erosion Affected Families in Assam”. According to the plan, when giving the land for the aforementioned plan, the government wanted to divide it into the following groups.
(a) Families who have lost their agricultural and residential land due to erosion and have no other land in the State. (b) Families lost not only their residential land, but also their agricultural land. (c) Families who have lost their farmland, but are homeless.
The scheme seeks to give special priority in selecting the beneficiary families to (1) Landless and homeless families due to erosion (2) Homeless families only (3) Landless families -a farm that has less than three houses but does not become homeless.
It should be remembered that the 2015 program is not based on the choice of the beneficiary of the presence or absence of land pattas. As a result, the scheme does not require those applying for the benefits of this scheme to present a land patta. Anyone who does not have a lease can be entitled to benefits, regardless of whether they lived on public land or in the forest. Millions of farmers in Assam are known to have been farming for years without getting a seasonal or annual patta.
But surprisingly, in 2020 the government of Assam introduced a plan named, “Rehabilitation Policy for Degraded Families in Assam 2020” notification RGR 785/2014/91 dated 6 January 2021 to deliberately remove those people from the list of degenerate people. affected marriage.
Unlike the system introduced in 2015, three categories have been identified in the latest plan and unlike the system in 2015, the priorities of this system are also the same. The following criteria must be met to qualify as a beneficiary of the 2020 policy:
(a) Nomadic lands subject to erosion must be registered in their Jamabandi names, i.e., temporary lease rights or annual leases or assigned land. (b) Families trespassing on government land will not be considered eligible for resettlement.
In Assam, most of the people affected by the erosion and floods do not have land contracts of their own, and millions of people still have no rent because of the wrong actions of the government such as improper survey, failure to provide tenant ownership rights. under the Tenancy Act. , and the improper settlement of the land found in the roof deeds.
Therefore, if such people are not recognized as landless due to the lack of land ownership records, then it should be understood that the government’s announcement to provide land and financial assistance to the landless people is nothing. do not exist.
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