Involuntary Displacement and Resettlement — Policy and ... - CEPA

2 LARC: Its Design and ImplementationWhen the state has to resort to acquiring private land for a public purpose,the statute under which the acquisition is effected is the Land Acquisition ActNo. 9 of 1950, and subsequent amendments (LAA). The act provides for thepayment of compensation as well as the process of acquisition. While theLAA provides for compensation at ‘market value’, this value is determinedsolely at the discretion of the Valuation Department. In addition, while theLAA provides a mechanism for a dissatisfied person to seek redress throughthe Board of Review 6 , there is no mechanism for them to participate in thecompensation determination itself, or understand the reasons for a particularcompensation. There is often substantial dissatisfaction with the compensationdetermination under Section 17 of the LAA, leading to court cases and delays.In addition, the LAA is limited to compensating for the acquired asset anddoes not deal with the broader issues of replacement of living standards orlivelihoods of the affected persons.LARC was first introduced in Sri Lanka in the Resettlement ImplementationPlan for the Southern Highway project, with the specific aim of fillingimportant gaps in the land acquisition procedure prevailing in Sri Lanka. Thedesign of LARC has two important principles embedded within it: (i) providecompensation at ‘replacement value’; and (ii) provide space for affectedpersons to participate and be consulted during the compensation process.This was with the intention of enabling the affected persons to understandthe basis for the compensation decisions, to influence the decisions made inrelation to their case and present any grievances relating to thecompensation process or amount.Replacement value was provided for through a ‘top up’ of the statutorypayment (under Section 17 of the LAA) for land and structures, which isdetermined by LARC, as well as a series of fixed-amount allowances which wasintended to compensate for costs of replacement such as renting of temporaryresidence, preparation of documents, shifting and replacing utilities.6The Land Acquisition Board of Review constituted under the provisions of Land Acquisition ActNo: 09 of 1950, hears appeals made by the parties who are not satisfied with the compensationreceived for compulsory acquisitions. The Board of Review consists of sixteen members out ofwhom eight are lawyers and eight are valuers, appointed by the President for a period of threeyears. The Board is assisted by the legal division of the Valuation Department.167