More than two months into Gujarat farmers’ agitation against the installation of high-voltage transmission lines and electricity poles across agricultural land, a revised compensation policy announced by the state government has failed to break the deadlock between the farmers and the state government.
The government’s resolution of July 4, 2026, shifted the basis of compensation from Jantri rates to market value and promised upfront payment, but farmers say the new framework still leaves them bearing the economic cost of infrastructure that can restrict the use and future value of their land.
At the heart of that dispute is the Market Rate Committee (MRC), which the government introduced to determine the prevailing market value. Under this, three valuers are appointed—one nominated by the landowners, one by the transmission service provider, and one by the district collector. Two reports are to be selected by lottery.
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The farmers have not only rejected the MRC but also its implementation. “The farmers will be at a loss as to the manner in which the calculations are to be done in the lottery system,” Nehul Amruiya, one of the farm leaders heading the agitation, told FE. Amrutiya is the nephew of Kantilal Amrutiya, a minister in Gujarat. Protests are being held at different parts of the state with protetors holding banners of “Not allowing BJP representatives in their villages”.
Interestingly, Gujarat appears to be the first state in the country to incorporate the Centre’s newly introduced lottery-based land valuation mechanism into its own transmission compensation framework.
It may be recalled that the Union Ministry of Power introduced the lottery mechanism in its amended Right of Way (RoW) guidelines, issued in December 2025. The guidelines provide for three valuers—nominated by the landowners, transmission service provider, and district magistrate—with two reports selected by lottery.
Gujarat’s July 4, 2026 GR has now incorporated that exact mechanism into its compensation framework for new and ongoing transmission lines of 66 kV and above in the state. The GR expressly says two of the three sealed valuation reports are to be selected through a lottery.
Escalating Pushback
What began as an agitation against Adani Energy Solutions Ltd.‘s (AESL’s) 765-kV transmission project linked to the Khavda Renewable Energy Park has now snowballed into a much larger resistance to installation of transmission lines by all corporates. “We are against all companies that are setting up transmission lines. The idea is to educate and empower each and every farmer regardless of transmission line(s) passing over their fields,” Amrutiya said.
Located near the international border in the Rann of Kutch, the renewable energy park is expected to become the world’s largest, spanning more than 72,600 hectares of barren land. The project, estimated to cost Rs 1.5 lakh crore, has multiple developers.
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At stake is 40 lakh bighas land and 4.50 lakh farmers in different districts of Gujarat, said Pratik Patel, one of the farmers, leading the protests. “The farmers will not be able to cultivate the land fully when the poles are erected. The poles and transmission lines bring down the land price. They will not be able to sell it to industrialists in future,” Patel lamented. He said that so far 23 lakh people are signatories in the registers kept at the protest hub in Jetpar.
Farm leader Palbhai Ambaliya, of the Congress, said this issue has been going on for the last couple of years. It only came to light when notices were served to the farmers in 26 districts of Gujarat. Ambaliya, under whose leadership the party has been educating the farmers, said there has been a demand for giving 400 times the market rate, but that has not been fulfilled by the government. “The farmers neither gain now nor when they might sell the land in the future,” he pointed out.
As for now, the government is sending its officials to the villages to get the names of farmers’ representatives. Amrutiya, however, said this is not acceptable to them. “For example, if there are 182 survey numbers in my village, how can just one person represent 182 people? Farmers will never agree,” he pointed out.
Earlier in a statement, AESL had said it was “fully committed to engaging with the landowners and paying them fair compensation as determined by the civic administration under the law.”
Initially, the Gujarat government had fixed compensation at 200% of the jantri rate—the state’s notified benchmark circle rate for land and property valuation. Following the protests, it revised the policy on July 4, offering compensation at 200% of the market value, along with a 100% upfront payment before work begins, and expanding the tower base area eligible for compensation. The farmers are opposing several points of the policy, but at the heart of the matter remains the MRC.
TOPICSPowerThis article was first uploaded on August eleven, twenty twenty-six, at thirty-one minutes past five in the evening. © The Indian Express (P) Ltd