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Rasulpur Bazaar in Ekma block of north Bihar’s Saran district enjoys a haloed status. Falling within Bihar Industry Minister Gautam Singh’s Manjhi Assembly constituency, it is the venue of one of the biggest new projects approved by the Nitish Kumar regime: a Rs 550-crore sugar mill-cum-distillery to be set up by India Glycols Ltd.

Ironically, Rasulpur also symbolises the biggest stumbling block in the execution of a slew of investment proposals approved by the present State government to facilitate the economic resurgence of Bihar: land acquisition. As in neighbouring West Bengal, officials visiting the site for this purpose recently met with serious resistance and were literally chased away.

The story is similar at many other places. Farmers of Digha on the western fringes of the state capital lodged strong protests with the government when efforts were made to acquire 1,000 acres of land there for setting up a mega industrial park. Land acquisition efforts in Champaran and Madhepura areas of north Bihar have run into similar difficulties.

It is a problem of considerable magnitude. Tens of thousands of acres of land are required for the implementation of 77 projects worth Rs 26,318 crore, approved (up to February) by the State Investment Promotion Board since the NDA regime came into office 15 months ago. But just a fraction of the land required is in the clear till date.

"Land acquisition is indeed proving to be a major headache for us, thanks largely to the instigation of our political opponents," admitted the Industry Minister, citing the Rasulpur experience. The hint was clear: Saran has been a hotbed of NDA-RJD competitive politics, especially after Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav re-acquired Chapra as his Lok Sabha seat in 2004-05.

Gautam Singh also confirmed that several sugar mill projects had been delayed owing to delay in land acquisition. "But now that the government has adopted a new land acquisition policy offering 240 per cent of the official rates to land-owners, it expects the situation to ease. But politics will remain a source of concern," he told Hindustan Times.

Notably, land acquisition has been relatively easier where private parties have negotiated with owners, directly. "My information is that promoters of a sugar mill project backed by film-maker Prakash Jha are in the final stages of acquiring land in Bettiah," said Bihar Industries Association president KPS Kesri.

The enhanced land rates would expedite the process, he opined. There is an interesting aside to the delays. Many officials believe they come as a relief to investors who may not be in a terrible hurry to increase capacity in view of the depressed sugar prices at present!

Email author: rai atul krishna@hindustantimes.com