West Bengal will scrap the Urban Land Ceiling Act, state finance minister Swapan Dasgupta confirmed on Friday (26 June), fulfilling a long-standing demand from industry bodies.
Speaking at a business conclave organised by The Delhi Council of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dasgupta said the government has taken certain important initiatives in terms of reforms, including the decision to eliminate the decades-old legislation.
The move follows the inaugural Budget by the Suvendu Adhikari-led government on Monday, where it had been noted that Bengal is the only major state where the urban land ceiling policy is still implemented.
West Bengal remains the only major state in the country where the Act’s provisions continue to be in force, hampering large-scale industrial and infrastructure projects.
The legislation, originally enacted in 1976, caps private land holdings at 500 square metres in urban areas.
Sushil Mohta, president of Credai West Bengal, said the land ceiling law had set back organised urbanisation in Bengal by at least 25 years.
The Centre repealed the Act in 1999, with most states subsequently scrapping it.
The government also announced several investment pledges at the conclave.
Navanit Narayan, wholetime director and chief executive officer of Haldia Petrochemicals, said the company was investing Rs 6,000 crore in India’s largest phenol acetone plant, whileJayanta Roy, managing director of The Peerless General Finance and Investment Company, announced Rs 1,000 crore investment across verticals.
Additional reforms outlined by Dasgupta include streamlined clearances for projects exceeding Rs 100 crore and plans to make Kolkata operate round the clock.
Dasgupta acknowledged that the reforms would put pressure on state finances, but said the government was banking on higher economic growth to offset the fiscal cost.
