Development Disparity, Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and Farmers: Interrogating Involuntary Displacement in India

Due to incessant scientific advancement, a new degree of developmental height is attained wherein the governance is vying for ‘capacity building’, ‘inclusive growth’ and ‘sustainable development’ to ensure social justice and a just social order. But behind such admired development achievements lays the grave for the underdevelopment of millions of marginal whose land is utilized for the sake of attaining national goal – creating paradoxical situation of ‘crisis of success’. By virtue of claim of sustainable and inclusive growth of the marginal farmers and labourers, the development endeavours carried out in recent past, contrarily, proved to be bane as it aggravated the problem of involuntary displacement, loss of land and livelihood, unemployment, food insecurity, human rights violation and hence negate the chances of an egalitarian society. By introduction of SEZs in 2005, on pretext of rural development, industrialization and employment generation, government opened flood gates to MNCs and big industries, further aggravating the problem of development induced displacement and making situation worse for the farmers. In this background, the paper critically comprehends the predicament of development induced displacement vis-à-vis state of farmers in India especially after the inception of SEZs act 2005. The paper brings under sharper purview the politics of governance which lacks social accountability by remaining apathetic to the plights of the farmers. The fluid condition of land acquisition and resettlement and rehabilitation acts in India, despite many revisions and amendments, act as catalyst to strengthen hegemonic minority against the feeble majority representing proletariat. The situation has set-up battle ground, wherein fierce struggle, protests and violence is seen on streets of India between the government, MNCs, industrialists and planners on the one side and; farmers, labourers, marginal communities supported by exponents of civil society, human rights activists, NGOs and environmentalists on the other destroying the tranquil environment.