This government, of West Bengal State, plans to turn over 997 acres of fertile farmland to one of the country’s largest industrial conglomerates, The Tata Group, for a factory that will produce a fleet of small, low-cost cars for India’s growing middle class.


How the land was acquired is a matter of red-hot contention, igniting crippling demonstrations, hunger strikes and occasional violent conflicts. The government says most of the landowners consented, but opponents charge coercion.

Land is one of India’s scarcest resources. So how this fight plays out is likely to teach far-reaching lessons to India as a whole, as it tries to balance the demands of industrial growth with the needs of those who rely on agriculture. Across the country, steel mills, power plants, roads, ports and hundreds of so-called Special Economic Zones are planned, all of which will require state governments like this one to acquire vast swaths of land.