Jalandhar: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab is finding itself in muddy waters after its much publicised but contentious Land Pooling Policy 2025 – a large-scale land acquisition policy – was met with stiff opposition and ‘no entry’ banners in villages by farmers in the state.The Punjab government aims to acquire 65,533 acres of land from 21 cities for government-approved urban development of residential and industrial projects. The policy was launched on June 2, 2025, and will be open till September 30 this year.In lieu of the land acquired, the government would give residential and commercial plots to farmers or landowners if they voluntarily agree to give up the land.Up in arms against the policy, farmers led by Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) – the two umbrella farmers’ and labourers’ unions – on July 30 held tractor marches across Punjab. Hundreds of farmers on tractors with banners against the policy held a march in various districts of Amritsar, Faridkot, Ferozepur, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Moga, Mansa, Bathinda and Patiala.Farmers during tractor march against AAP government’s land pooling policy. Photo: Kusum AroraWhile Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann was hard-selling the policy by luring farmers with financial gains through public events and advertisements, the agitated farmers said they will not let the AAP government touch even an inch of their land, let alone acquiring acres.Facing scathing attacks from farmers, the AAP government has been left all alone in its bid to implement the policy. Facing criticism from the main opposition party, Congress, and SAD, as well as the BJP, which continues to bear the brunt of its farm laws, the AAP now stands cornered in the state. This is the AAP govt’s second face-off with farmers, which is the core vote base of every party in Punjab. In March this year, the Mann government had cracked down on the KMM-led farmers’ protest for MSP law against the Union government.Interestingly, not just the implementation of the policy, but the replacement of chief minister Mann with the chief secretary as the chairman of the Punjab Regional Town Planning & Development Board also drew flak from the opposition. While the opposition termed the replacement as arbitrary and unconstitutional, AAP termed it as a move to accommodate CM Mann’s ‘busy schedule’.Farmers leading tractor march in various villages of Punjab against land pooling policy of AAP government. Photo: Kusum AroraThe administrative shuffle in turn fueled farmer’s stance that Delhi’s AAP leadership led by Arvind Kejriwal was calling the shots in Punjab.What is the Land Pooling Policy 2025?The Punjab cabinet approved Land Pooling Policy 2025 on June 2 with an aim to curb the illegal colonies and land mafia by directly acquiring land from farmers to develop urban residential and industrial townships.According to the government, the plan is to acquire 43,983 acres for residential zones and 21,550 for industrial projects out of a total acquired land of 65,533 acres in the state.Initially, the policy did not cover small farmers. However, last week, the Punjab cabinet amended the policy and increased the annual compensation for farmers from the previous Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 per acre. Under the amended policy, farmers with less than one acre land will also be eligible for residential and commercial plots.For every one kanal (about 0.125 Acres), the farmers would get a 125 square yard residential plot and a 25 sq yd commercial booth site. Similarly, for two kanal, they would get a 250 sq yd residential plot and 50 sq-yd commercial site. A three kanal land will fetch two residential plots, of 250 sq yd and 150 sq yd plot each, along with a commercial site of 75 sq yd.Similarly, a contribution of four kanal land will fetch a residential plot of 500 sq yd or two plots of 250 sq yd and a 100 sq yd commercial site. The benefits increase further with residential and commercial plots up to seven kanal of land.A key amendment done by the government was that the farmers would receive an annual livelihood allowance of Rs 1 lakh until their land is developed – a fivefold increase compared to Rs 20,000 given by previous governments.The government also assured long-term support by announcing a 10% annual increment in the Rs 1 lakh amount. To ensure a faster and transparent process, the government would also issue a Letter of Intent (LOI) to farmers within 21 days. The farmers were also assured that they could sell or use the LOI to obtain loans, a Punjab government press release stated.Notably, in Punjab, the government acquired urban residential and industrial projects that were under the control of development authorities like Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA), Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) and Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA), etc.‘A ploy to uproot farmers’Questioning the land pooling policy, senior SKM leader Darshan Pal questioned that many residential colonies and industrial plots were lying vacant in the state. “Did the government take those into account?”“Neither is this policy good for Punjab, nor the farmers. Rather, by imposing it, the AAP government will come under crisis and they should not forget that assembly elections 2027 is not far away,” he said.The SKM leader did not shy away from saying that the land pooling policy appears to be a system to gather money controlled by AAP’s Delhi team. “It seems that the framework of the policy was planned in Ludhiana, the industrial hub of Punjab to benefit real estate groups, ignoring the farmers,” he said, referring to a common concern that New Delhi has always ignored Punjab.Notably, when protesting farmers were removed from Shambu and Khanauri borders, it was the industrialists from Ludhiana who had forced Arvind Kejriwal to take a call.Pal mentioned how farmers across Punjab villages have banned the entry of not just the AAP leaders but that of Punjab government officials too. “If the AAP government went ahead with the policy, the farmers’ movement will further gain momentum in Punjab and that will cost the government dear,” he added.Notably, apart from protests and banning the entry of AAP leaders in villages, the farmers were also passing resolutions against the policy.In Jalandhar’s Kot Kalan village, farmers confronted two AAP workers after they came to their village at night to discuss land acquisition. The farmers burnt the publicity material of the policy.Sukhvir Singh, BKU (Doaba) block president from Jalandhar Cantonment, who was present at the gathering in Kot Kalan, asserted that they stopped the AAP workers and told them not to enter the village.Singh, whose 1.5-acre land has come under the policy, said, “The fact is that after losing Delhi, the AAP leadership needed money for which they have come up with this policy. They will flee Punjab after collecting crores from our fertile lands. Once our land gets acquired, what will we do? Sit idle in shops? We will not let anybody even step into our fields,” he said.Another farmer, A.S. Bahia, whose 22 acres of land has come under the policy, said that he voted for AAP for “badlav (change)” but he was repenting his decision now. Farmers in Ludhiana holding tractor march against land acquisition policy. Photo: Kusum Arora“This policy is nothing but a ploy to grab our land, which no farmer can tolerate,” he said. Raising questions over the policy, he added, “Who is AAP’s Delhi leadership to grab our land?”The farmers are saying that if CM Bhagwant Mann does not scrap the policy, they will be forced to approach the high court. They will not let AAP grab their livelihood and fields.Senior journalist Hamir Singh, who recently made a video educating the farmers on how to pass resolutions against the policy, said that the government launched the policy without conducting any survey, and they did not mention the number of houses required in the state in comparison to the population. He added that it is also unknown how much of previously acquired government residential and industrial land was lying with the Punjab government. “The government should share the details in a notification and clarify the need for land pooling”, he said.“Land acquisition can only be done under the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. However, the AAP government boycotted Section 11 of the Act, which was against the Indian constitution,” the journalist said.He added that even if the government decides to acquire land for some purpose, it is mandatory to take permission from atleast 70% of the gram sabha. Farmers under SKM during their protest against land pooling policy at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district. Photo: Kusum Arora“The Punjab government also ignored the fate of landless farmers. If the policy is implemented, it will ruin villages, which is why the AAP government was now luring the farmers with enhanced compensation of Rs 1 lakh per month,” he said.Hamir Singh also mentioned how, over the years, several acres of productive land acquired by previous governments in and around Mohali district in the name of development were lying vacant now.AAP MP questions policy, later deletes postSensing the magnitude of protests, Malwinder Singh Kang, AAP MP from Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha, also spoke against the land acquisition policy on X on July 27. However, he deleted the post on July 28.Tagging the Punjab government, he had written: “The objections raised by farmer unions on Land Pooling Policy must, in my view, be heard with empathy and addressed through meaningful dialogue. In the last three years, our government has ensured uninterrupted agri-power, pushed canal water to every field, fast tracked mandi reforms and promoted crop diversification. On this too, trust must be earned- not assumed- before any policy takes root.”‘Where will farm labourers go?’ ask ex-Punjab bureaucratsTalking to The Wire, ex-IAS officer-turned-full time farmer Kahan Singh Pannu said that Punjab government’s intention behind this policy was not clear. “The government’s intention could be good too but they need to make it clear. If the government’s idea is to provide affordable housing, it will come under question because land prices are already sky high and it will increase further. How will people get affordable housing?” he said.He said that whenever a major policy of this scale is launched, its social impact and the rehabilitation of the displaced people is planned. “What will the farm labourers, dairy farmers, MNREGA workers do? Thousands of farm labourers will be displaced, where will they go? The MNREGA workers get employment in the villages, what will they do? The government must address these issues,” he said.On farmers’ fears of losing their livelihood and agricultural land worth crores, Pannu said that basically, the government is asking the farmers to quit farming. “Such a situation can lead to social unrest in the state and all these factors must be considered”, he said.Another ex-IAS officer, Khushi Ram, also advocated the need for development but not at the cost of farmers’ livelihood. “Under this policy, farmers will get compensation in lieu of their land acquired but where will the farm labourers go? If the Punjab government is committed to development, it should give 25% compensation to labourers too,” he said.Punjab is an agrarian economy and a lot of land has already been acquired by different governments under various schemes. This policy, he emphasised, was an attempt to ruin Punjab’s villages: “Pind khatam karn di koshish ho rahi hai,” he said.The bureaucrat, who is running a Punjab-based social organisation called‘Samajik Samanta Sangathan’ with the motto of ‘Samvidhan bachao, Loktantar bachao, Desh bachao’, stated, “We stand with the farmers’ on this issue. Punjab’s development and farmers’ welfare should go parallel to each other.”Opposition targets AAPCongress leader Pargat Singh, who is leading farmers’ protest in Jalandhar Cantonment villages for the past one month, termed the notification of the policy as flawed. He said, “There was no environmental assessment, social impact assessment or fair compensation mechanism. The policy lacks basic due diligence and violates the principle of consent. Once land is taken, an entire village’s social and economic fabric will be destroyed.”The Congress leader also said that the AAP government was working under the directions of New Delhi and has prepared a plan to hand over 50,000 acres of land to corporate houses. “Farmers are being kept in the dark as this policy is being implemented without consent or adequate information,” he added.SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, while interacting with reporters in Mohali, termed the land pooling policy as ‘land grabbing scheme’. “The Punjab government is acquiring 3,535 acres in Mohali whereas the 2,000 acres of Aerotropolis project here was still not utilised. There is no rationale behind it,” he said.