Resettlement of project - affected people

Development projects necessitate involuntary resettlement more often than is usually realized and this is not a problem which will fade away in the forseeable future. Projects which involve population relocation are basic to development and poverty alleviation. However, for the affected people, resettlement often proves to be a traumatic experience. Resistence to people-displacing projects is therefore becoming widespread.

Experience suggests that the problems arising from displacement, though stubborn, are not insurmountable. Impoverishment from displacement is preventable. In fact, resettlement with people enjoying a level of living even better than before should not be an impossible dream. To be able to achieve success in this effort, it is however essential that those responsible for planning and managing resettlement have full grasp of the issues involved, the people related issues in particular.

Focussed on Rajasthan, this publication is the product of a training seminar organized at the HCM Institute to familiarize the officer-trainees of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) with the resettlement issues involved in development work. It should be of interest to all those engaged in the management as well as the study of projects involving resettlement.