Law & Life

The Andhra Pradesh Assigned Lands (Prohibition on Transfer) Act, 1977 is an important piece of land reform legislation in Andhra Pradesh that protects the rights of poor persons — particularly Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and landless labourers — to whom government land has been assigned (allotted) by the government. The Act prohibits the transfer of such assigned lands and provides for the restoration of any assigned land that has been illegally transferred. Background and Purpose As part of land reform programmes, state governments including Andhra Pradesh assigned (allotted) government land to landless poor persons — particularly dalits and tribals. However, after receiving such land, the poor assignees were often pressured by powerful local interests to sell or surrender the land for inadequate consideration. Within a few years of assignment, the land would end up in the hands of the rich and powerful, defeating the entire purpose of the land reform programme. The AP Assig...

Forest land is a special category of land in India that is subject to a comprehensive legal framework designed to protect and conserve India's forest cover and the communities that depend on it. Forest land is governed primarily by the Indian Forest Act, 1927 , the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 , and the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (commonly known as the Forest Rights Act ). The protection of forest land is essential not just for environmental reasons but also for the protection of the livelihoods and rights of tribal and forest-dwelling communities. Classification of Forests Under the Indian Forest Act, 1927 The Indian Forest Act, 1927 classifies forests into the following categories: 1. Reserved Forests — Section 20 Reserved forests are the most strictly protected category of forests. The State Government can declare any forest land or wasteland as a reserved forest. In a reserved forest: All rights of pri...

Land grabbing is a serious social and economic problem in India where persons with political power, economic influence, or criminal connections illegally occupy and appropriate land belonging to others — particularly government land, public land, and land belonging to vulnerable individuals. To address this menace, the Government of Andhra Pradesh enacted the Andhra Pradesh Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, 1982 (AP LG Act). This Act provides a special and expeditious remedy for the recovery of grabbed land and for the punishment of land grabbers. The Act has been a model for similar legislation in other states. Background and Need for the Act Before the enactment of the AP LG Act, 1982, victims of land grabbing had to approach civil courts for recovery of their land. Civil court proceedings were extremely slow, expensive, and often ineffective against powerful land grabbers. Land grabbers would use their political and economic influence to delay proceedings and to prevent the rightfu...

The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (commonly known as the RFCTLARR Act, 2013 or the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 ) is the most significant reform in Indian land acquisition law since independence. It came into force on 1st January, 2014 , replacing the century-old Land Acquisition Act, 1894 which had been widely criticized for being unfair to landowners and ignoring the needs of those displaced by land acquisition. The 2013 Act was enacted with the following twin objectives: To ensure that landowners receive fair compensation when their land is acquired To ensure that those displaced by land acquisition receive adequate rehabilitation and resettlement The Act embodies the constitutional values of social justice, rule of law, and protection of the rights of the poor and vulnerable — particularly farmers, landless labourers, and tribal communities. Historical Background — Why the 1894 Act Was Replaced The...