PM eases rules for govt land transfer

New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday approved changes in the transfer policy for government - owned land, in a move that will pave the way for fasttracking pending infrastructure projects. 

    The decision adds to the PMO's efforts to kickstart infrastructure projects that are crucial to revive the country's growth and boost sentiment. 
    The government, which has been under fire for project delays and lethargy in policy-making, is keen to boost investor sentiment and get the engines of growth roaring again. Easing of rules will boost PP projects 
New Delhi: PM Manmohan Singh, in a bid to speed up infractructure projects, has eased norms governing transfer of government-owned land. Early last year, a ban had been imposed on transfer of such land to any entity except in cases where the land was to be transferred from one government department to another. Thursday's decision will allow all cases of land transfer from ministries to statutory authorities or PSUs. 
    Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has also relaxed norms for land transfer on lease or rent or licence to a concessionaire which has been appraised through the public-private partnership approval committee (PPPAC) route and approved by the finance minister or the ministers concerned or the Cabinet, depending upon the value of the project. 
    Also, he has allowed the development and use of railway land by the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA), according to the provisions of Railways Amendment Act, 2005, and government rules. According to the PMO statement, the relaxation in the land transfer rules is expected to significantly speed up award of public-private partnership (PPP) projects from this month. 
    After the ban was imposed last year, the department of economic affairs was asked to prepare a comprehensive land transfer policy for government-owned land. Any department which had to implement a project that required providing land either through lease, licence or rent, had to seek Cabinet approval. The process of securing Cabinet approval is a time-consuming exercise that delayed projects. "This was leading to long delays in awarding contracts for infrastructure projects, particularly PPP projects. All PPP infrastructure projects—roads, railways, ports, civil aviation and metros—have some element of land alienation as the project is often built on governmentowned land," the PMO statement said. "The government continues to own the land which is leased or licensed out. Requiring Cabinet approval for each PPP project meant adding a few months to complete the processes for securing Cabinet nod," it said. 
    Delayed projects have been cited as one of the key reasons for the slowdown in industrial growth—industry players have often complained about the delay in land acquisition.