The Noida International Airport at Jewar, Uttar Pradesh -poised to be the largest in Asia - is a flagship piece of India's infrastructure ambitions. To build it, thousands of farmers in villages across Gautam Buddha Nagar and surrounding districts surrendered fertile land they had cultivated for generations. In return, the state government offered crores in compensation to the farmers. The airport hasn't been inaugurated yet, but the compensation money has already dried up.
Recently, there were several reports and videos on social media on how farmers, after selling their land in the earlier phases of the acquisition, are now demanding additional compensation. They are claiming that the initial payouts are no longer enough to sustain their livelihoods. The emerging ground reality is more complex - and deeply worrying.
India has significantly raised its infrastructure spending after the COVID-19 pandemic, aiming to boost economic growth and create more jobs in the world's most populous country. In the fiscal year 2026-27, the Union government will spend a record Rs 12.2 trillion on infrastructure - an 11.4% annual rise from the previous year.
With such a rising infrastructure push, doesn't India urgently need a financial management mechanism in place for displaced landowners?
Wealth explosion
The greenfield airport, developed under the public-private partnership (PPP) model, has missed multiple deadlines. The first phase of the project, spread over around 1,300 hectares, was initially scheduled to begin operations in September 2024.
At first glance, this financial transfer was a success story: landowner families went from modest agrarian incomes to crorepati status almost overnight. Few were wise enough to use the compensation money wisely; others just frittered it away.
Several ground reports and conversations with locals suggest that the influx of cash has, in many cases, been spent on luxury goods and conspicuous consumption rather than sustainable investments. Cars, large homes, high-end gadgets, and consumer durables have become common status symbols. Expensive mobile phones, new SUVs, and lavish houses with marble floors are now part of rural Jewar's landscape. Yet many of those who bought such goods are now struggling to make ends meet, with little left in savings and no long-term income to replace lost agricultural livelihoods.
Farmers have cars but no money to fill petrol. With land and the associated activities gone, farmers sit idle indulging in bad habits. Easy money has led to an increase in alcoholism and gambling addictions.
This is not a problem exclusive to Jewar. Across India, when large infrastructure projects acquire rural land, a sudden conversion of fixed assets (land) into liquid cash happens without adequate financial planning support. Land did not just generate regular income; it was identity, security, collateral - and a livelihood strategy. Once sold, that lifeline is gone.
Inadequate compensation protocols
The current Indian legal framework for land acquisition - under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 - mandates compensation based on market rates plus multipliers and social safeguards. But it does not require long-term financial or livelihood planning for displaced owners.
When farmers receive a cheque for a large sum, there is no structured guidance on budgeting, investment or sustaining income in the decades ahead. Without a framework to encourage saving or productive reinvestment, many families view the payment as a 'windfall' to be spent.
Unlike formal workers who may receive reskilling or assistance in outplacement, farmers lose their income engine when land is sold. With compensation often not tied to income replacement strategies, families that relied on farming are left without a source of regular earnings. Besides, a lack of formal or vocational education becomes a roadblock in employability.
Politicians and administrators promise job opportunities, employment schemes, or resettlement benefits alongside compensation, but implementation is sporadic at best. Even when promised, these benefits rarely translate into real jobs with sustainable incomes.
Given the scale of infrastructure projects happening nationwide - from ports and expressways to smart cities and energy corridors - the Jewar experience should be a wake-up call. A financial management and livelihood transition mechanism is urgently needed to ensure that compensation does not become a short-lived moment of conspicuous spending but a catalyst for lasting prosperity.
Some financial mechanism
Before compensation is disbursed, landowners should receive structured financial education - tailored to their context and delivered in local languages. Long-term investment planning (including safe mutual funds, fixed deposits, business planning, etc).
Risk management and insurance literacy should be mandatory before large lump sums are released to equip recipients with decision-making tools.
The government should consider phased or conditional payouts, instead of a lump sum upfront, tied to milestones and investment plans. This can temper irresponsible expenditure and encourage long-term growth.
Many farmers and their families want to pursue education or careers outside agriculture but lack access to training. Governments should tie compensation to skilling programmes in non-farm sectors - construction management, hospitality around airports, logistics, retail and services - to open real income pathways.
Instead of individual payouts, governments could offer participation in community investment funds - managed professionally and designed to generate steady dividends for groups of displaced families. There are provisions in the mining sector to properly compensate and, where needed, provide suitable employment to Project Affected Persons (called PAP). Similarly, in the energy infrastructure sector, villagers get compensated for giving the right of Way (called ROW) to Transmission and Energy Utilities.
India stands at an inflexion point. Historic infrastructure projects like Jewar Airport could transform the economic geography of regions, catalysing jobs and growth. But without robust financial management frameworks for those displaced by such projects, the short-term wealth they receive can dissolve into unsustainable consumption.
Compensation - in crores - is no substitute for security, planning and sustainable livelihoods. Jewar should teach policymakers that writing a cheque is easy; building a future is the challenge. A mechanism that blends compensation with education, phased disbursement, investment frameworks and livelihood pathways will protect not just farmers' bank balances, but their dignity, identity and long-term economic well-being.
Only then can India's infrastructure ambitions truly uplift the lives they transform.
(The author is Contributing Editor, NDTV)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author
