Sikkim Government Issues Corrigendum Modifying Land Acquisition for Mangan-Chunthang Road Project

The Government of Sikkim's Land Revenue Disaster Management Department recently issued a Corrigendum, Notification No. 785/LRDMD/2025/06, dated September 5, 2025, which was subsequently published in the Sikkim Government Gazette (Extraordinary) No. 360 on September 16, 2025. This Corrigendum serves to amend a previous Declaration, Notification No. 47/LRDMD/ACQ/GOS dated September 9, 2024, which was issued under Section 19 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (RFCTLARR Act 2013). The original declaration pertained to the acquisition of land for the new realignment of the Mangan-Chunthang road, a project undertaken by the Border Roads Organisation 107 RCC GREF (Ministry of Defence), Government of India, across the Revenue Blocks of Toong, Naga-Namgor, and Shipyer in Mangan District. The Corrigendum specifically addresses a change in the project's scope, leading to the exclusion of a particular land parcel from the acquisition process. This legal instrument came into force upon its publication in the Official Gazette.

The primary objective of this Corrigendum is to ensure the accuracy and relevance of land acquisition proceedings in response to evolving project requirements. It addresses a situation where the proposed alignment of the road in the Naga-Namgor Revenue Block was diverted from its original path and subsequently abandoned. This change rendered the acquisition of certain land parcels unnecessary for the public purpose initially declared. The legislation provided: “Since the re-alignment of proposed alignment of road in the Revenue Block of Naga-Namgor is diverted from other end and abandoned, the land bearing Plot no.143 (P) for the aforementioned public purpose, therefore, same plot may be excluded in the acquisition of land.” This action rectifies the earlier legal position, which included Plot no. 143 (P) in the acquisition plan, by formally excluding it. The policy rationale behind such an amendment is to prevent the acquisition of land that is no longer required for a public project, thereby safeguarding the rights of landowners and optimizing public resources. It demonstrates the executive branch's capacity to adapt statutory declarations to ground realities, ensuring that land acquisition is strictly limited to what is essential for the project. This Corrigendum builds upon a prior correction issued vide Notification No.62/LRDMD/ACQ/GOS dated February 13, 2025, further refining the scope of the land acquisition for the critical Mangan-Chunthang road infrastructure project.

Keywords: Sikkim, Land Acquisition, Corrigendum, Mangan-Chunthang Road, RFCTLARR Act 2013, Border Roads Organisation, Naga-Namgor, Plot Exclusion, Government Gazette

Geo Tags: India, Sikkim District: Mangan