Bhopal, Aug 12 (IANS) Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath opposed the state government’s land pooling policy, warning that it may harm farmers in future.

Calling the BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government’s new land acquisition law “anti-farmer”, Congress veteran said that the policy should be withdrawn immediately, else the opposition will stage a massive protest to oppose the law.

Citing recent farmers’ protests against the land pooling policy in Punjab, Kamal Nath said that Madhya Pradesh may witness such protests if the new law to acquire farmers’ land is not withdrawn in time.

“If Madhya Pradesh doesn’t withdraw its policy (land pooling) in time, the Congress party will adopt every possible measure to oppose it,” Kamal Nath said in a statement issued to the press on Tuesday.

Notably, the state government has amended the Madhya Pradesh Nagar Tatha Gram Nivesh (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam, 2025, which was passed during the monsoon session of the State Legislative Assembly last week.

Madhya Pradesh utilises land pooling as a key tool for planned urban development, particularly within its Integrated Township Policy, which allows landowners to willingly come together to combine their landholdings for planned urban development.

The concept of land pooling policy was first introduced by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) nearly a decade ago to acquire agricultural land of farmers for real estate purposes.

Later, the policy was adopted in Noida, Greater Noida and other development authorities in Delhi-NCR. The land policy method minimises the need for traditional land acquisition, which often entails complex procedures and compensation issues.

Land pooling supports organised urban expansion, ensuring the availability of land for infrastructure and affordable housing.

What is surprising is that Kamal Nath, who had once supported the land pooling policy during his tenure as Chief Minister in Madhya Pradesh (2018-2020), now opposes the CM Mohan Yadav government’s new policy for land acquisition.

–IANS

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