Legal disputes normal as population explodes

– The rapid growth of Indian cities combined with unclear land ownership is triggering legal disputes, analysts said, while rights groups report violent evictions of poorer communities.

India’s urban population is set to grow by more than 400 million – more than the population of the entire United States – to 814 million by 2050.

As land is sought for offices and homes, developers and officials face multiple ownership claims and unclear titles.

Many marginalised communities have been built on disputed land, and the advocacy group Housing and Land Rights Network said some evictions have been violent and took place without proper con- sultation, consent, compensation or advance notice.

About 31% of the 1.3 billion population lives in cities and towns, but analysts say this goes by a decades-old definition of urban areas, and that the real number is close to 60%.

So-called peri-urban spaces have grown in the intersection of urban and rural areas, with lands once earmarked for agriculture being used for homes.

Meanwhile, India’s rank for registering urban properties fell to 154 from 138 on the World Bank’s Doing Business Index for 2018.

Land records are gradually being updated and digitised. Several states are using blockchain technology to record land deals. –