Central Government Issues Notification for Land Acquisition for Badampahar-Kendujhargarh Special Railway Project in Odisha

The Ministry of Railways, acting through the South Eastern Railway’s Construction Organization, issued a statutory notification on July 22, 2025, declaring the Central Government’s intention to acquire land in the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. Published in the Gazette of India on July 23, 2025, under the reference S.O. 3383(E), the instrument was executed in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 20A(1) of the Railways Act, 1989. The acquisition is necessitated by a declared public purpose involving the execution, maintenance, management, and operation of the Badampahar-Kendujhargarh new railway line. This infrastructure development, spanning a total of 82.06 kilometers with a specific 47.46-kilometer section currently under focus, has been officially designated as a Special Railway Project. The notification identifies various land parcels across three primary areas, namely the Kashiabeda, Timitimida, and Majhigaon Mouzas (village-level administrative units) situated within the Kusumi Tahsil (an administrative sub-division) of Mayurbhanj.

The legislation provided: “the Central Government, after being satisfied that for the public purpose, the land, the brief description of which is given in the schedule below, is required for execution, maintenance, management and operation of Badampahar-Kendujhargarh (82.06 Km.) new line (47.46 Km. section) as Special Railway Project in the district of Mayurbhanj in the state of Odisha, hereby declares its intension to acquire such land.”

The statutory framework established by this notification outlines a clear procedural path for affected parties and the government. Any person with an interest in the specified lands is granted a period of thirty days from the date of the notification’s publication in the Official Gazette to file an objection. These objections must be submitted under Section 20D(1) of the Railways Act, 1989, and directed to the designated Competent Authority, which in this instance is the Land Acquisition Officer of Mayurbhanj. The office for such submissions is located within the establishment of the Collector and District Magistrate in Baripada. The notification mandates that all objections be made in writing, clearly setting out the legal or factual grounds upon which the acquisition is contested.

The legislative intent behind these provisions is to balance the necessity of rapid infrastructure development with the rights of private landholders. To ensure due process, the Competent Authority is required to provide every objector with an opportunity to be heard, either in person or through a legal practitioner. Following this hearing and any further inquiry deemed necessary by the Land Acquisition Officer, an order will be passed to either allow or disallow the objections as per Section 20D(2) of the Act. The notification clarifies that any such order rendered by the Competent Authority shall be final, thereby providing legal certainty to the project’s progression. Detailed land plans and specific plot information have been made available for public inspection at the office of the Competent Authority to ensure transparency for the residents of the affected rural districts.

The scope of the acquisition involves a variety of land types, including private holdings categorized as Sharad (irrigated land), Dahi (upland), and Gharbari (homestead land). By invoking the provisions of Chapter IV-A of the Railways Act, the government has utilized a specialized statutory framework designed to expedite land procurement for projects of national importance while maintaining a structured grievance redressal mechanism. This move replaces the standard land acquisition procedures with the more streamlined "Special Railway Project" protocols, which are intended to address the statutory gaps often found in general acquisition laws regarding large-scale linear transport infrastructure. The enforcement of this notification commenced immediately upon its publication in the Official Gazette, marking the formal beginning of the land procurement phase for the Badampahar-Kendujhargarh rail link.

Keywords: Railways Act 1989, Land Acquisition, Odisha, Mayurbhanj, Special Railway Project, South Eastern Railway, Badampahar-Kendujhargarh, Ministry of Railways, Section 20A

Geo Tags: India, Odisha
District: Mayurbhanj