'Profitable deal': Punjab's land pooling scheme gets enthusiastic support from farmers

Representative image

Sarmers have shown a strong support for the land pooling policy of the Punjab government, under which, farmers voluntarily offer their land to the government and in return, the government gives them residential as well as commercial spaces in urban estates.

The policy, which allows the government to give the farmers a 1000-square-feet residential space and a 200-square-feet shop-cum-office for every one acre of land that they offer, aims to promote an inclusive way of development and ensures that the owners of the land are active participants in shaping the future of the state.

Times of India reported that the farmers have shown immense support and called the deal "profitable" and a great opportunity to be part of the development without the complications of traditional ways of land acquisition.

This policy of the Punjab government allows farmers to sell their land or to develop it into residential or commercial spaces, thereby opening up new means of income for them.

Reports have said that several farmers from Mohali, Ferozepur, Amritsar, Patiala and other places have already joined the scheme, thus signalling the readiness that the farmers feel for the new policy.

Reportedly, in the first week itself, farmers in Patiala have offered 150 acres of land to the government. Meanwhile, over 50 farmers in Mohali have already signed up for the new policy. Districts like Amritsar, Moga, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Sangrur, Kapurthala and Bathinda have also reported outpouring of positive responses for the Punjab government's scheme.

The policy does not force the farmers to sell their land at undervalued prices and farmers also feel that they can enjoy freedom and transparency through the scheme. This is in contradiction to the old means where private stakeholders would buy the land at low prices and would enjoy all the benefits of it.