New land pooling scheme to turn landowners to stakeholders

C Shivakumar

Chennai:

In a bid to adequately compensate the landowners and acquire land smoothly for various projects, the state government is planning a land pooling scheme where the land owners could be stakeholders.

DTCP sources told Express the concept, which is based on the Ahmedabad model and has even been suggested under the Justice Mohan Committee report, will come into being once the government amends the Town and Country Planning Act.

As per this scheme, the land owners will submit their land to planning authorities who will prepare a detailed development plan for the land. Once the area is developed with roads and other amenities, the pooled land will go in for bidding to get in investment for the development. Once the land is developed the remaining land will be given depending on proportionate of their pooling of the extent of land. “The landowners may likely to get back 55 per cent of the proportionate area of land pooled by the owners. The resulting plot will have enhanced value than it was previously,” he added.

Under this scheme neither the government pays for the acquisition of the land and neither the land owner loses his land whose value would have increased.  However, when questioned on what will happen to those land owners on whose land the structures have been built, DTCP sources said the landowner will be compensated with additional FSI and transferrable development rights.

The scheme will be implemented only if 60 per cent of land area owners agree to pool their land.  The time factor also plays an important role as the development project has to be completed within 18 months once the plan is prepared.

Interestingly, sources claim the new scheme is far better than the old scheme where the land owner stands to lose as he has to gift his land for the project by getting a minimal amount.

Ahmedabad model:

When a development plan or a new road alignment is proposed, the Town Planning scheme does not acquire the land from the private owners. Instead, it temporarily pools the required land and the area for laying roads, amenities and other public purposes are delineated and allocated. Normally about 20 per cent of land is required for roads and another 20 per cent for common amenities. The remaining area is then reconstituted into plots as envisaged in the development plan and given back to the original owners. The land re-allotted would be proportionate to the size of the original plot and the location would be as close as possible to its original location. The cost to develop the roads and other infrastructure would be raised by selling public amenities spaces through auction or through selling the land pooled for the common purpose. The public amenities like road and other infrastructure are developed before the land is handed over to the owners.

Tamil Nadu

Roads – 25 per cent

Open spaces reservation: 10 per cent (will be maintained by corporation or planning authority)

Schools and other social amenities like hospitals: 10 pc of land

(public open spaces in the hospitals and schools will be auctioned)

Other areas for commercial and residential areas returned to owners: 55 pc