The government is drafting a new act amending the Land Acquisition Act 1992 for doubling the amount of compensation for land acquisition in the country.
Confirming the drafting of the new act to the Dhaka Tribune, State Minister for Land Mohammad Shaifuzzaman Chowdhury said, “The officials are working in this regard.”
He said the government had taken the initiative for increasing the amount of compensation for land acquisition after agreeing in principally to the deputy commissioners’ proposal given in their conference held in 2003 to do it.
“We hope the law will be amended shortly which will create the way to increase the compensation.” Ministry officials said the draft of the act would be finalised shortly as it is in the final stage.
A land owner currently gets 50 per cent above their land’s real price as compensation for land acquisition after the government amended the Land Acquisition Ordinance, 1982 as per which the damages was 20 times the land’s real price.
The amount of compensation however has not been increased much in the hill tracts as a land owner there gets only 15 per cent above their land’s real price.
This compensation disparity has created anger among hilly people.
Besides, people elsewhere also do not consider the current amount of compensation for land acquisition satisfactory. They even do not show their interest in having their land acquired by the government.
Considering this all, the deputy commissioners had in 2003 suggested that the government should increase the amount of compensation 100 times the real price.
The Land Ministry accepted the proposal of the field-level administrators and asked the officials concerned to amend the provision of the law.
According to the instruction, the new draft of the act is being prepared.
The state minister, according to the ministry officials, will present a working paper before the deputy commissioner’s conference in Dhaka, which starts on July 8 and runs until July 10.