AJEET KUMAR Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition represents a festering disease in the affairs of the Ranjit Sagar Dam Project which was earlier known as the Thein Dam Project. To make the dam huge tracts of land had to be acquired from the settlers/land owners to realize the construction of the mega project to produce electricity for the National Grid. Much of the land had to get submerged in water when the dam got commissioned and the people being displaced had to be evacuated beforehand. The Ranjit Sagar Dam project site in Shahpur Kandi Township near Pathankot is the largest hydroelectric dam in the State of Punjab and lies in the cusp of three States i.e. State of Jammu & Kashmir, State of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. Since the project involved acquisition of lands falling in three States they met through their representatives at the highest level in the respective Governments on January 20, 1979 with the Chief Ministers of the State of Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir in attendance to together lay down in public interest the terms and conditions and other formalities relating to the construction of the Dam in power sharing ratios and sundry matters. One of the conditions was that displaced families whose lands, houses and shops were to be acquired under the provisions of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 they needed to be not only compensated in terms of money but also rehabilitated for loss of their land. To that end Clause 12 of the agreement was signed with a view to provide immediate employment opportunities to the displaced persons from the Thein Dam Project in Class IV posts in the proposed Project/in Government departments on a preferential basis in the matter of employment of such persons as an exception to the general rule of public employment through equal opportunity scheme in Article 14 and 16 of the Constitution. The agreement was signed by the then Chief Ministers of Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir as witnesses etc. and the expenses for stamping on completion of the agreement were decided to be borne by the Government of Punjab in whose territory the dam was to be built. Construction began in 1981.

(2.) In the wake of the agreement, the State of Punjab framed a policy for rehabilitation and resettlement of the oustees of the Ranjit Sagar Dam for which various rehabilitation packages were introduced. The main one of the rehabilitation measures was to offer appointment to one member of the family of those who were rendered landless and whose families were affected by the project according to the qualifications held and subject to future availability of vacancies in the project itself to tide over the hardship of ouster of the landowners from their traditional properties leaving them landless and homeless, their land ultimately drowned in water by diversion of the Ravi river.

(3.) The first effort to rehabilitate oustees to employment opportunities was initiated in the year 1997 when a large number of them were interviewed to be put on the live list from where claims could be considered and satisfied. In this exercise 946 families were identified to whom the benefits of job opportunities would be available. This list of oustees was finalized vide letter dated November 20, 1997 (P-2).