Delhi
Madanpur Khadar, Jagatpur, Palla
,
Chilla Khadar
,
East of Delhi
Published : 12 July, 2014   |   Last updated - 24 Jun, 2024
Caught in conflict: Delhi's urban farmers live in constant fear of eviction
Reported by
Saumya Srivastava
Legal Review by
Anmol Gupta
Updated by
Anupa Kujur
3105
Households affected
11743
People Affected
Year started
53
Land area affected
3105
Households affected
11743
People Affected
Year started
53
Land area affected
Key Insights
Sector
Land Use
Reason/Cause of conflict
Other Kind of Land Use
Conflict Status
Ongoing
Ended
Legal Status
Region Classification
Urban
Ended
1
Summary

Farmers of Chilla Khadar village in East Delhi live in constant fear of eviction amid the ongoing conflict with the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) over the ownership of land along the Yamuna floodplains.

While the farmers claim that they have been farming over the Yamuna floodplains for generations, the DDA proposed a Yamuna Riverfront Development Project, for which officials have started marking land, drawing and redrawing boundaries.

The officials informed farmers that cultivators whose land comes inside the marked territory will be evicted. Hence, the farmers continue to live in uncertainty, wondering whose crop will be destroyed next.

Over the years, several farmers have been displaced, their shelters been demolished because of the absence of these farmers from official records.

Ram Chandra, a farmer in Chilla Khadar, learned last year that there is no official record of them living or farming there. “We do not exist here, as per the official document. I learned about this during the monsoon when our farm flooded due to heavy rain. We went to meet the Sub-Divisional Magistrate of East Delhi. There we got to know that there is no official record of us living or farming here since 2018,” Chandra told Mongabay India.

Though the Draft Delhi Master Plan 2041 mentions urban farming is allowed along the Yamuna floodplains, it does not recognise agricultural activities happening at many places such as Chilla Khadar.

Moreover, a major portion of these floodplains are cultivated by tenant farmers, who pay an annual rent to landowners. Amid the dispute, these tenant farmers are at the receiving end as they are the ones who get evicted or their crops are destroyed by DDA officials.

In the absence of an official recognition and no formal agreement with the landowners, these farmers live in uncertainty as they could be evicted anytime.

2
Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for legal recognition of land rights

Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Common and Private

Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land)

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Source/Reference

Total investment involved (in Crores):

Type of investment:

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Author
Reported by
Saumya Srivastava

Delhi

Kumar Sambhav is a social entrepreneur and award-winning journalist, leading innovative research in accountability investigations. He is the founder of Land Conflict Watch and is currently working as India Research Lead with Princeton University’s Digital Witness Lab.

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Fact sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for legal recognition of land rights

Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources

Caught in conflict: Delhi's urban farmers live in constant fear of eviction

Reported by

Saumya Srivastava

Legal Review by

Aditya Sharma, Anmol Gupta

Edited by

Anupa Sagar Kujur

Updated by

Updated by

Published on

February 29, 2024

March 31, 2024

Edited on

February 29, 2024

Sector

Land Use

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Other Kind of Land Use

Starting Year

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

53

ha

Households Affected by Conflict

3105

People Affected by Conflict

11743

State

Delhi

Sector

Land Use

People Affected by Conflict

11743

Households Affected by Conflict

3105

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

53

ha

Starting Year

Location of Conflict

Chilla Khadar

Madanpur Khadar, Jagatpur, Palla

East of Delhi

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Other Kind of Land Use

Land Conflict Summary

Farmers of Chilla Khadar village in East Delhi live in constant fear of eviction amid the ongoing conflict with the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) over the ownership of land along the Yamuna floodplains.

While the farmers claim that they have been farming over the Yamuna floodplains for generations, the DDA proposed a Yamuna Riverfront Development Project, for which officials have started marking land, drawing and redrawing boundaries.

The officials informed farmers that cultivators whose land comes inside the marked territory will be evicted. Hence, the farmers continue to live in uncertainty, wondering whose crop will be destroyed next.

Over the years, several farmers have been displaced, their shelters been demolished because of the absence of these farmers from official records.

Ram Chandra, a farmer in Chilla Khadar, learned last year that there is no official record of them living or farming there. “We do not exist here, as per the official document. I learned about this during the monsoon when our farm flooded due to heavy rain. We went to meet the Sub-Divisional Magistrate of East Delhi. There we got to know that there is no official record of us living or farming here since 2018,” Chandra told Mongabay India.

Though the Draft Delhi Master Plan 2041 mentions urban farming is allowed along the Yamuna floodplains, it does not recognise agricultural activities happening at many places such as Chilla Khadar.

Moreover, a major portion of these floodplains are cultivated by tenant farmers, who pay an annual rent to landowners. Amid the dispute, these tenant farmers are at the receiving end as they are the ones who get evicted or their crops are destroyed by DDA officials.

In the absence of an official recognition and no formal agreement with the landowners, these farmers live in uncertainty as they could be evicted anytime.

Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for legal recognition of land rights

Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Common and Private

Type of Common Land

Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land)

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Source/Reference

Total investment involved (in Crores):

Type of investment:

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Legal Data

Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict

Legislations/Policies Involved

Delhi Development Act, 1957
Section 30 [The Delhi Development Authority cannot demolish unauthorised structures without giving affected landowners or parties a reasonable opportunity to be heard. Notice for the same cannot be less than 5 days.]
National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act, 2011
Section 3(1)(a) [The Union government shall make policies and guidelines for the orderly relocation and rehabilitation of slum dwellers in a sustainable, planned and humane manner]
Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board Act, 2010
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    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute

No

What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?

What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?

Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:

Non-consultation with stakeholders

Legal Status:

Out of Court

Status of Case In Court

Whether any adjudicatory body was approached

No

Name of the adjudicatory body

Name(s) of the Court(s)

Case Number

Main Reasoning/Decision of court

Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:

No items found.

Reported Details of the Violation:

Date of Violation

Location of Violation

Additional Information

Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:

Delhi Development Authority (DDA)

PSUs Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?

Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached

Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?

No

Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:

Information on the use of criminal law

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Resources

Resources Related to Conflict

  • News Articles Related to the Conflict:
  • Documents Related to the Conflict:
  • Links Related to the Conflict:

Images

Tenant farmers washing their produce in Chilla khadar area of Delhi

Image Credit:  

Aakiz Farooq

Agriculture fields on Yamuna floodplains. The draft Delhi Master Plan ignores many areas where farming is still happening.

Image Credit:  

Aakiz Farooq

Video

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