Challenge Low Land Acquisition Compensation: Section 64

If the Collector's land acquisition award is too low, you can challenge the amount by applying in writing for a reference under Section 64 of the RFCTLARR Act 2013, so a Land Acquisition Authority re-decides your compensation. Do not accept the award unconditionally; either refuse it or accept it under protest, then file your Section 64 application within the time limit, stating the grounds why the amount is wrong.

This guide is for any landowner or interested person, like a farmer whose land was taken for a highway, irrigation canal, industrial corridor or township, who believes the compensation in the Collector's award is far below the real market value of the land. It explains how to dispute the quantum (the amount), not delay in payment. If your problem is that payment is late or has gone to the wrong claimant, see the companion guide on delayed or wrongly-paid land acquisition compensation instead.

Most land acquisitions today are governed by the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (commonly called the RFCTLARR Act or LARR Act 2013). It came into force on 1 January 2014 and repealed the old Land Acquisition Act, 1894. The 2013 Act was designed to give far higher and fairer compensation than the 1894 law.

Under the 2013 Act, the Collector first publishes an award stating how much compensation each landowner gets. If you think that figure is too low, Section 64 is your route to a fresh, independent determination. It lets a person interested who has not accepted the award apply in writing to the Collector and require that the matter be referred to the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Authority (a quasi-judicial body set up under Section 51 of the Act). The Authority then determines the dispute under Section 69, and can enhance the compensation.

A Section 64 reference is not only about the amount. You can object to:

• the measurement of the land (how much area was counted),
• the amount of the compensation (the core ground when the award is too low),
• the person to whom the compensation is payable,
• your rehabilitation and resettlement entitlements under Chapters V and VI, and
• the apportionment of the compensation among the persons interested.

For a “compensation too low” complaint, your ground is the amount.

Knowing how the law builds the figure helps you show the Authority that the award is short. Under the 2013 Act, compensation is the market value plus extras, not just the bare market value:

So a low award usually means the Collector understated the market value, applied the wrong multiplier, or missed the value of structures and trees. These are exactly the points your Section 64 application should attack.

1. Do not accept the award unconditionally. The single most important step. Once you accept compensation without protest, you may lose the right to ask for more. If you take the money, accept it expressly “under protest” and get that protest recorded in writing.
2. Get a certified copy of the award. You need the Collector's award and the date it was made or the date you received notice of it, because the time limit runs from these dates.
3. Gather evidence of higher market value. This is the heart of the case. Collect registered sale deeds of comparable plots sold around the relevant date in the same area, the government circle rate or ready-reckoner rate, valuation reports, and proof of the buildings, wells, borewells, fruit trees and standing crops on your land.
4. Write the Section 64 application. Address it to the Collector. State clearly that you have not accepted the award (or accepted under protest), that your objection is to the amount of compensation, and set out the grounds, comparable sales, circle rate, and the correct multiplier and solatium. The application must state the grounds of objection.
5. File it within the time limit (see the table below). Submit it to the Collector and keep a stamped acknowledgement.
6. The Collector refers the matter. On receiving a valid application, the Collector must, within thirty days, make a reference to the appropriate Authority. If the Collector fails to do so, you can apply to the Authority itself to direct the Collector to make the reference within thirty days.
7. Attend the Authority hearing. The Authority hears both sides, considers your sale deeds and valuation, and determines the compensation afresh under Section 69. It can enhance the amount.
8. If still aggrieved, appeal to the High Court. Under Section 74, the Requiring Body or any person aggrieved by the Authority's award may appeal to the High Court within sixty days of the award (extendable by up to a further sixty days for sufficient cause).

The application must reach the Collector in time, or it can be rejected as barred. The deadline depends on whether you were present when the award was made.

Because the windows are short, prepare and file as soon as the award is announced. Do not wait.

The Authority decides on evidence, so the quality of your proof matters more than how strongly you feel the award is unfair. Strong material includes:

• Registered sale deeds of similar nearby plots sold near the acquisition date, ideally smaller transactions reflecting true market rates.
• The official circle rate / ready-reckoner / guideline value for your area.
• A valuer's report and proof of the area, soil type, road access and use of the land.
• Proof of assets: photographs, counts and valuation of trees, crops, wells, boundary walls and any building.

This is a simple illustration of the maths, not a real case. Suppose a rural plot is valued at a market value of 10,00,000 rupees, and because it is close to town the multiplication factor is 1.5. The value of trees and a well on it is 1,00,000 rupees. The base becomes (10,00,000 x 1.5) + 1,00,000 = 16,00,000 rupees. Add 100% solatium of 16,00,000 rupees, and the compensation works out to 32,00,000 rupees. If the Collector's award only counted 10,00,000 rupees of bare market value with no proper multiplier or solatium, a Section 64 reference is the way to claim the rest.

Only if you took it under protest. If you accepted the award unconditionally, you generally give up the right to seek more. So always record, in writing, that you are accepting the money under protest, and then file your Section 64 application within the time limit.

If you were present when the award was made, six weeks from the date of the award. If you were not present, six weeks from receiving the Collector's notice or six months from the award date, whichever expires first. The Collector can condone delay up to a further one year for sufficient cause.

The Collector must make the reference to the Authority within thirty days of a valid application. If the Collector does not, you can apply directly to the Authority and ask it to direct the Collector to make the reference within thirty days. Courts have held the Collector has no discretion to refuse a properly made reference.

There is no fixed figure. The Authority recalculates compensation as market value multiplied by the First Schedule factor (1 to 2 in rural areas, generally 1 in urban areas), plus the value of assets, plus 100% solatium under Section 30. If the Collector understated any of these, the enhancement can be substantial.

No. The 2013 Act bars the jurisdiction of civil courts over matters the Authority is empowered to determine. Your route for disputing the amount is the Section 64 reference to the Authority, and then an appeal to the High Court under Section 74.

Yes. Section 64 is about disputing the quantum, that the amount is too low. If your money is simply late, or has been paid to the wrong person, that is a different problem handled differently. See the guide on delayed or wrongly-paid land acquisition compensation.

If your acquisition award looks low, act fast: get a certified copy of the award, refuse it or accept under protest, and start collecting comparable sale deeds and circle-rate proof immediately. Draft your Section 64 application stating the amount as your ground, and file it with the Collector well inside the six-week or six-month window. Keep the acknowledgement. If the Collector stalls, approach the Authority directly. For a deeper, plain-language understanding of how to use your information and appeal rights against the government, read The RTI Playbook.