‘Is this a joke?’: Gauhati HC on allotment of 3,000 bighas of land to private company in Dima Hasao

The Gauhati High Court recently questioned the allotment of 3,000 bighas, or about 4 sq km, of land in Assam’s Dima Hasao district to a private company to set up a cement factory, directing the state government to furnish the policy under which “such a huge chunk of land” could be given away.

“3000 bighas allotted to a private company?” Live Law quoted Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi as verbally saying on August 12. “We know how barren the land is…? What kind of decision is this? Is this some kind of joke or what? Your [company’s] need is not the issue...the public interest is the issue.”

The case pertained to the allocation of a plot of land measuring 2,000 bighas in the district to Mahabal Cement Private Limited in October 2024, The Indian Express reported. In November, the private company was allotted an additional adjacent plot measuring 1,000 bighas.

Dima Hasao is a tribal-majority hill district in Assam. It is administered under the provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution through an autonomous body, the North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council.

The Sixth Schedule governs the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

The order allotting the land to the cement factory in October 2024 was issued by the additional secretary (revenue) of...

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