Farmers Seek National Policy on High-Tension Power Line Compensation

SURAT : Farmer organisations in Gujarat have stepped up pressure on the Central Government by demanding a comprehensive national policy to compensate farmers whose agricultural lands are affected by high-tension power transmission lines and towers. Claiming that thousands of cultivators continue to suffer financial losses without adequate relief, the Kisan Samaj (Gujarat) has submitted a detailed memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking immediate intervention.

The memorandum highlights the hardships faced by farmers across Gujarat, including those in Surat’s Olpad taluka, where transmission towers and power lines ranging from 66 kV to 800 kV have been erected on agricultural land. According to the farmers’ body, these projects have resulted in significant economic, social and psychological distress, while compensation mechanisms remain inconsistent and inadequate.

“Farmers are losing productive land, but the existing compensation system does not reflect the actual damage or long-term impact on agriculture. A transparent and uniform national policy is the need of the hour,” the Kisan Samaj said in its memorandum.

The organisation has urged the Centre to identify alternative routes for future transmission lines wherever possible to minimise damage to fertile farmland. It has also sought a scientific and transparent method to assess crop losses, restrictions on land use and permanent financial compensation for affected landowners.

Farmer leaders alleged that in several cases, power infrastructure has been developed on private agricultural land without obtaining meaningful consent from landowners, leaving them with little legal or financial recourse.

“The government must ensure that development does not come at the cost of farmers’ livelihoods. Compensation should be fair, timely and based on the actual losses suffered by cultivators,” a Darshan Naik, a farmer leader said during the representation.

The Kisan Samaj has further appealed to both the Central and Gujarat governments to temporarily halt work on new high-tension transmission line projects until a comprehensive policy is finalised.

Several farmer and cooperative leaders, including Gujarat Kisan Congress President Jayeshbhai Patel, former Sumul Dairy Director Jayeshbhai Patel, farmer leader Darshan Naik, South Gujarat Kisan Samaj President Rameshbhai Patel, Morthan Sarpanch Jayeshbhai Desai and Kaushikbhai Desai, were present while extending support to the demand.

Farmer organisations expressed hope that the Union Government would take a positive decision to safeguard agricultural interests while balancing the country’s growing power infrastructure needs, ensuring that development and farmers’ rights progress together.