'Modi favours 'big private cos', trying to give land in hurry'

Hitting out against move to amend the land acquisition law, former AAP member Prashant Bhushan today accused Narendra Modi-led government of favouring "big and private companies" and trying to give away land to them in a hurry.
"The thinking of Modi government is to open the way quickly for big companies, specially private companies, and acquire land by the government and give it to them hurriedly," Bhushan told reporters here.
Speaking at the launch of "Coallateral: A Report of the Independent People's Tribunal on the MoU between Rajmahal Pahad Bachao Andolan and Panem Coal Mines", he accused the government of working to ensure that "there are no hurdles" for the companies while acquiring land.

"It is because of that they have made regulations of environment protection Act more lenient," Bhushan said.
The previous UPA-government, he said, in the Land Acquisition Bill had made a provision in which "consent of 70-80 per cent of the people was to be taken before the land acquisition and there was a provision for the social impact assessment".
"But after the new government came through Ordinance, this has been changed. Efforts are now being made to change it...Which means that for 90 per cent of the projects there would be no consent and there would be no requirement of social impact assessment," Bhushan claimed.

Last month, the government had re-promulgated the land acquisition ordinance after it could not convert into a legislation in Rajya Sabha due to stiff opposition.