India has 1,092 land conflicts affecting 1.42 crore people: rights group

Bhumi Adhikar Andolan said India has 1,092 land conflicts affecting 1.42 crore people. The coalition said weakening land and forest safeguards is fuelling evictions, demolitions and coercive acquisition.

In Short

• Conflicts are linked to acquisition, evictions, demolitions, displacement and forest diversion
• The coalition documented nearly 300 fresh cases during the past year
• Rights groups alleged safeguards under land and forest laws are weakened

India is witnessing 1,092 land conflicts affecting nearly 1.42 crore people and covering 4.47 lakh hectares, Bhumi Adhikar Andolan, a coalition of rights groups, said. The platform said these conflicts reflect a widening crisis linked to land acquisition, eviction, demolition, forest diversion and displacement.

It said it recorded around 300 such cases over the last year and accused authorities of weakening legal protections meant to safeguard people’s rights over land and forests. The coalition also called for an immediate halt to forced evictions, bulldozer demolitions and coercive land acquisition.

Bhumi Adhikar Andolan, a platform of mass organisations working on indigenous peoples’ rights, farmers’ rights and ecological protection, said in a statement, "This is happening despite legal safeguards under the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, the Forest Rights Act (FRA), PESA, the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, social impact assessment provisions and gram sabha consent." It added that these protections are being diluted, bypassed or reduced to empty procedures.

The platform said land is being cleared for highways, airports, freight corridors, mining, industrial corridors, real estate and other uses. "What is being presented as 'development' is in reality the transfer of land, forest, commons, water bodies, coasts and working-class settlements from people to corporations," Bhumi Adhikar Andolan said.

It also said the weakening of the FRA is alarming. By May 2025, out of around 51 lakh FRA claims filed, only about 25 lakh titles had been recognised, according to the platform. "Around 18.6 lakh claims were rejected, and 7.5 lakh remained pending. Community forest rights continue to lag behind, weakening gram sabha authority over forests and commons," it said. The coalition also demanded mandatory gram sabha consent and social impact assessment for all projects affecting land, forests, commons and livelihoods.

In its statement, Bhumi Adhikar Andolan said land conflicts across India are affecting a large number of people and vast areas, while legal safeguards and forest rights protections are being weakened, and it reiterated its call for stronger consent and assessment processes and an end to forced evictions and coercive acquisition.

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