Urban sprawl, rural loss: Why India needs a land policy before it's too late

The prolonged agitation by farmers in Devanahalli taluk against the acquisition of their agricultural land for industrial purposes highlights the growing conflicts over land use in large cities and their urban peripheries—between agricultural, industrial, and other urban needs. Fortunately, this issue was resolved peacefully following the intervention of the chief minister, and the proposal to acquire 1,777 acres of land was dropped.

India’s rapid urbanisation, particularly in metro cities like Bengaluru, has created enormous demand for urban land, while the supply remains short. Government agencies such as the BDA, KIADB, and the revenue department routinely acquire land for residential, industrial, commercial, and infrastructure projects. Much of this land lies beyond municipal limits and includes large tracts of agricultural land. This leads to two major problems: first, the dispossession of farmers from their long-held lands and their livelihoods; and second, the loss of farmland and green cover, which adversely affects the environment.

Exorbitant urban land prices—reflecting the government’s failure to regulate land markets and ensure adequate public land supply—have distorted the land market. This has triggered widespread conversion of agricultural land by both public agencies and the real estate industry, which often buys land directly from farmers. The result is unchecked urban sprawl, with corresponding challenges in providing adequate services and infrastructure to the newly developed areas.

An inefficient land market creates a cascade of further issues. High land prices encourage unauthorised constructions, encroachments, and the indiscriminate conversion of residential areas for commercial use, often flouting rules. The obsession with construction, with little regard for public spaces, has also created a parking crisis amid the relentless rise in vehicle numbers.

The land earmarked for acquisition in Devanahalli was intended for an aerospace park. After the plan was dropped, Nara Lokesh, Andhra Pradesh’s minister for IT and electronics, invited the investors to his state, offering liberal incentives. Karnataka’s Minister for Industries M B Patil responded swiftly, asserting that the state had sufficient land and a robust ecosystem for aerospace and defence industries. This interstate competition to attract investment is one reason why large tracts of land are acquired without due consideration for existing land use or the livelihoods of those who depend on it. In AP itself, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu acquired vast swathes of fertile land between Vijayawada and Guntur to build the new capital, Amaravati—despite protests and expert committee recommendations against it.

In Mumbai, another kind of land-use conflict has played out in the Aarey Colony, where wetlands, woodlands, and farming plots have been earmarked for a metro car shed. The project pits the need for improved public transport in an overcrowded city—where more than eight million commuters rely daily on an ageing suburban rail network-- against the imperative to protect dwindling green cover. Protesters describe the 3,000-acre area as the city’s “last green lung”, but construction is proceeding.

Environmental impact: The conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes can seriously damage the environment and ecology—leading to biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation, and increased pollution. It also results in the release of stored carbon, contributing to climate change. The United Nations has emphasised that land plays a key role in the global carbon cycle; land-use activities can either release or remove greenhouse gases. Sustainable land management—across forests, wetlands, and coastal zones—is essential for mitigating climate change and ensuring food security.

In Bengaluru, the built-up area has surged from 8% to 93% in the past 50 years, and the city has lost 79% of its water bodies. This also explains the inordinate delays in supplying water to 110 villages merged into the city when BBMP’s jurisdiction expanded from 250 sq km to 780 sq km over 15 years ago.

Despite four completed water supply projects drawing from Cauvery and a fifth in progress, nearly 50% of Bengaluru’s fresh water needs are met through borewells. In the summer of 2024, the BWSSB announced a 20% cut in water supply to major consumers like railways, airports, hospitals, and companies due to severe water shortages.

Bengaluru is not alone. India faces an unprecedented water crisis. According to a recent Parliamentary Standing Committee report, “Groundwater provides 80% of rural drinking water, 50% of urban drinking water, and nearly two-thirds of irrigation needs.” As cities continue to grow, groundwater exploitation intensifies, and water tankers are becoming the norm. Depletion and contamination of groundwater in cities and their peripheries have become a serious concern.

Need for a land policy: Urban land challenges cannot be addressed through ad hoc measures, as has been the case so far. What is needed is a well-conceived land policy that balances the needs of urban agglomerations with the need to preserve agricultural land, water bodies, and environmental assets. Such a policy should also incorporate an industrial location strategy that places major industrial hubs at a distance at least 60 km away from core urban areas. 

As early as 1965, the Committee on Urban Land Policy set up by the government laid out four basic objectives: a) optimum social use of urban land, b) supply of adequate quantity of urban land at reasonable prices, c) encouraging community effort for land development and housing, and d) preventing concentration of land ownership.

Unfortunately, tools like land acquisition, urban land ceiling law, master plans, and zoning regulations have been reduced to instruments of political exploitation rather than tools for public good. Today, as urban crises reach alarming levels, it is imperative for both government and civil society to wake up and act. 

(The writer is a former chief secretary, Government of Karnataka)