Ashok Lahiri Urges Bengal to Ditch Blanket Ban on Multi-Crop Land for Industry

Niti Aayog vice-chairman Ashok Lahiri has argued that a blanket ban on acquiring multi-crop land for industry would be a mistake. Speaking in Kolkata on the sidelines of the 19th Banking Colloquium organised by the CII eastern region, he said Bengal should judge each proposal on its merits and put fair compensation at the centre of any land deal. His remarks land just as the state prepares its upcoming industry policy.

Lahiri pointed to Bengal's crowded geography, where population density runs about three times the national average. In his view, the state needs both factories and farms, which means farm productivity must rise rather than industry being shut out of fertile plains. He also suggested that industrial projects are unlikely to gravitate toward hill areas or forest edges where basic infrastructure is missing, so the practical pressure will fall on land that already has access to roads, power and workers.

The debate carries political weight in Bengal. Farmland acquisition shaped the state's recent history, most visibly during the Singur agitation over a Tata Motors plant, a movement that fed into a change of government. The current BJP administration, in office for about six months, has signalled that it will buy land directly from owners, consider changes to the urban land ceiling law, and examine whether to modify a provision of the land reforms act that caps holdings for industrial units. Lahiri's position is that public trust is the real hurdle: landowners must feel the price is fair, and investors must see a policy that signals the state is serious about business.

On the banking side, Lahiri linked the region's low credit deposit ratio to a shortage of bankable projects and slow industrial modernisation. He said Bengal's population share runs ahead of its share of national income, and its per capita income of roughly Rs 2 lakh sits below the national average. His remedy combined large infrastructure, such as a deep-sea port that could draw fresh investment, with support for both big manufacturers and MSMEs that generate steady demand for institutional credit and jobs.

For readers tracking Bengal's economy, the message is that the land question and the credit question are connected. A policy that moves land acquisition forward without sacrificing farmers' interests could unlock the projects banks need to lend against. The next draft of the industry policy will show whether the state chooses that calibrated path or sticks with a firmer restriction.

Read the full report at the original Times of India story.

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