India buys land abroad, 9 times the size of Delhi
India buys land abroad, 9 times the size of Delhi
Snehal Rebello, Hindustan Times Mumbai, October 19, 2013
First Published: 19:33 IST(19/10/2013) | Last Updated: 10:46 IST(20/10/2013)
Indian companies have acquired land more than nine times the size of Delhi on foreign shores, as cultivable land at home is lost to urbanisation, industry and infrastructure projects.
Land Matrix, a global land monitoring initiative that tracks land dealings worldwide, placed India among the top 10 countries that have acquired large tracts of land abroad, primarily for agriculture, in Africa and Asia. The country ranks eighth, next to China, in the list which has US, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates and UK among the top buyers.
Of the total 848 deals concluded globally since 2008, 80 involve Indian companies that have invested in 65 deals to grow foodg rains, sugarcane, oil seeds, tea and flowers.
Land Matrix data show 12.89 lakh hectares have been acquired via long term lease or ownership basis in 39 deals by Indian companies. The US tops the list with 71.47 lakh hectares followed by Malaysia (34.58 lakh hectares) and Arab Emirates (28.33 lakh hectares).
These acquisitions have been driven by the 2007-08 increase in world food prices, scarcity of land in India, global rise in demand for basic staples such as pulses and food grains and diet diversification to high value commodities like fruits, vegetables, processed meat and milk.
“Over the last two decades, the net sowing land in India has reduced from 42 million hectares to 40 million hectares. We lost agriculture land to real estate and industry and there is no scope to increase net sowing land,” said Professor Vijay Paul Sharma, centre for management in agriculture at the IIM-Ahmedabad.
Sharma, a former agriculture economist with the Indian Council for Agriculture Research, added, “With farming moving to production of more high value crops, limited availability of land in the country and slow pace of technology in agriculture, the alternative available to large companies who want to produce more is to acquire land overseas.”
Sannati Group of Companies is one such group. It acquired on lease in October 2010 fertile land with virgin soil and access to unlimited water for irrigation in Ethiopia, one the company said had never been cultivated for a long time.
Apart from Ethiopia, Indian companies have acquired land in Cambodia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Kenya, Liberia, Tanzania, Sudan, Malaysia, Mozambique, Uganda and Zambia.
Land Matrix, a global land monitoring initiative that tracks land dealings worldwide, placed India among the top 10 countries that have acquired large tracts of land abroad, primarily for agriculture, in Africa and Asia. The country ranks eighth, next to China, in the list which has US, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates and UK among the top buyers.
Of the total 848 deals concluded globally since 2008, 80 involve Indian companies that have invested in 65 deals to grow foodg rains, sugarcane, oil seeds, tea and flowers.
Land Matrix data show 12.89 lakh hectares have been acquired via long term lease or ownership basis in 39 deals by Indian companies. The US tops the list with 71.47 lakh hectares followed by Malaysia (34.58 lakh hectares) and Arab Emirates (28.33 lakh hectares).
These acquisitions have been driven by the 2007-08 increase in world food prices, scarcity of land in India, global rise in demand for basic staples such as pulses and food grains and diet diversification to high value commodities like fruits, vegetables, processed meat and milk.
“Over the last two decades, the net sowing land in India has reduced from 42 million hectares to 40 million hectares. We lost agriculture land to real estate and industry and there is no scope to increase net sowing land,” said Professor Vijay Paul Sharma, centre for management in agriculture at the IIM-Ahmedabad.
Sharma, a former agriculture economist with the Indian Council for Agriculture Research, added, “With farming moving to production of more high value crops, limited availability of land in the country and slow pace of technology in agriculture, the alternative available to large companies who want to produce more is to acquire land overseas.”
Sannati Group of Companies is one such group. It acquired on lease in October 2010 fertile land with virgin soil and access to unlimited water for irrigation in Ethiopia, one the company said had never been cultivated for a long time.
Apart from Ethiopia, Indian companies have acquired land in Cambodia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Kenya, Liberia, Tanzania, Sudan, Malaysia, Mozambique, Uganda and Zambia.
Comment
"Destroying the New World Order"
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!
Latest Activity
- Top News
- Everything
Truth or Fiction? You Figure it Out
Working for the federal government, specifically, the Pentagon. I was, what you might call a…See More
GOLDSPHINCTER - Donald J Trump is Acrid Goldsphincter (James Bond Music Parody)
In this James Bond parody, Donald J Trump is Acrid Goldsphincter in our version of the classic Bond "Goldfinger" theme song. All voices and singing performed...
How Long does Destabilization Take?
How long does it take to topple a society targeted by the left? What ingredients go into this toxic…See More
"cheeki kea you are spot on. It won't be until the elephant on Wall Street is as high as the…"
"Greetings and welcome to you Gordon it's great to have you join us all here."
"For those trapped in mass formation the ugly truth and all the clues will not be realised until the…"
Dare to Dream/Dare to Build
As we enter the month of Av we intensify our traditional mourning for the Holy Temple, but are we really in touch with what we are mourning for? Are we ready...
© 2026 Created by truth.
Powered by
You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!
Join 12160 Social Network