CAG glare on lax monitoring of R&R norms for industrial projects

The Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) has flayed the state government for ineffective monitoring of R&R (rehabilitation & resettlement) activities at district and department level.

The external auditor in its report on 'General and Social Sector' for the year ended March 2014 observed that due to lax monitoring, absence of proper planning and inadequate survey, 798 project displaced families of 13 industrial projects during 1992-2013 were not properly rehabilitated. Full benefits due to such affected families were not extended.

CAG pointed out the lack of a complete database in respect of number of people affected, displaced or provided employment in the industrial projects. It observed that though the state revenue & disaster management department launched an application software named 'Project Punarbas' with the objective to automate the land acquisition and R&R process, develop database, survey methodologies and set up responsive grievance redressal system, the initiative, costing about Rs 1.40 crore, has failed to deliver its objective.
 

"Seven industrial projects made direct purchase of 726.974 acre of land in 19 villages from private land owners without conducting socio-economic survey (SES) due to which identification of affected people and their entitlement under R&R policy could not be evaluated and proper planning for them was not made though the government was responsible to cover them under R&R policy", the report said.

"Employment or one-time cash compensation in lieu of employment was not provided to 588 project displaced families by 10 out of 32 test checked industries amounting to Rs 31.92 crore. Rehabilitation assistance for Rs 22.08 crore such as compensation for double displacement, compensation for missing land, cash in lieu of employment, self-relocation allowance, house building assistance, assistance for temporary shed and maintenance allowance was lying un-disbursed as of March 2013", the report added.

Audit noticed that Rs 187.09 crore of compensation including interest was kept undisbursed with the collectors as of March 2013 in case of 32 industries in 13 districts even after passing of award against acquisition of land for a period ranging between one and 17 years.

The compensation was not disbursed for companies like Bhushan Steel Ltd (Dhenkanal), GMR Energy Ltd (Dhenkanal), Aditya Alumina Project (Rayagada), Vedanta Alumina Ltd (now Sesa Sterlite), Jharsuguda, Tata Steel Ltd (Jajpur) and Odisha Power Generation Corporation Ltd (Jharsuguda) to name a few. Audit noticed that 14 industries acquired 5,505.64 acres of land under the erstwhile Land Acquisition LA Act in 65 villages of eight districts in different phases. But, socio-economic survey (SES) was not conducted for the above land in the absence of which correct data about affected people and extension of benefit under R&R policy could not be ensured.

The CAG report has also exposed the loopholes in functioning of Rehabilitation & Periphery Development Advisory Committees (RPDAC). Audit noticed that functioning of RPDACs left several gaps as SES reports were not insisted upon and discussed in the RPDAC meetings, R&R plans were not submitted for approval, decisions taken were not carried out by project authorities, adequate number of meeting were not held to discuss R&R issues.

Scrutiny of minutes of RPDAC meetings revealed that in case of 16 out of 32 projects, SES reports were discussed and approved, in 15 other cases, reports were not discussed. In one case, SES was not conducted. RPDACs did not insist on submission of SES report for their approval, due to which, R&R plan for affected families were not prepared, the CAG report stated.