Land acquisition and transfers for private industry: a case study in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh
This study aims to provide a detailed examination of the processes by which land is procured by private companies undertaking public purpose projects, as well as the role of the state in these transfers. It looks at both legal and illegal mechanisms of land transfers, while acknowledging that even transactions that appear to be legitimate on paper may not be truly legal; and also there is a distinction between formal and substantive legality, and between legality and justice. Similarly, rules and regulations governing the transfer of land are often subjectively interpreted and implemented by the state and its officials, resulting in transactions that, though legal, may be severely unjust to certain stakeholders.