CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has ruled that affected families cannot be displaced until the promised alternative plots are properly developed and physically handed over to them.
A single judge bench of Justice SK Panigrahi has quashed eviction notices issued to three sevayats of Baba Akhandalamani Temple at Aradi in Bhadrak district. In the judgment, which was uploaded on Monday, Justice Panigrahi also directed Bhadrak collector to complete the rehabilitation process before proceeding with eviction for the temple redevelopment project.
The petitioners, claiming that the structures they occupied were their ancestral homes, had challenged notices issued by the superintending engineer, Bhadrak (R&B) Division, on December 16, 2025, directing them to vacate within seven days or face demolition.
The court took note that the petitioners had already received rehabilitation assistance of `3,87,454 each, including house-building assistance, maintenance allowance, temporary shed and transportation costs. Alternative plots had also been recorded in their favour.
However, the court said monetary compensation and revenue records could not by themselves amount to completion of rehabilitation. The identified resettlement land was low-lying and required filling, roads, drainage, electricity, water supply and other civic amenities.
Referring to section 38(2) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, Justice Panigrahi said the rehabilitation process must be completed before affected families are displaced. “A plot on paper is not a home on the ground. Rehabilitation must travel from the file to the field,” the judge remarked.
The court also expressed concern over the approach of the authorities, saying it was “crestfallen to find a blinkered vision of development” where urgency for the project had not been matched by equal urgency in fulfilling rehabilitation commitments.
The collector has been directed to secure necessary sanctions and entrust the development work within six weeks. The rehabilitation site must be completed within six months, including levelling, all-weather road access, drainage, electricity and potable water. No eviction or demolition can take place until these conditions are fulfilled. Thereafter, the authorities must issue fresh notices giving the petitioners 15 clear days to vacate.
“An explanation for non-performance is not performance. Nor can the state convert its own unfinished obligation into a default on the part of the petitioners,” Justice Panigrahi ruled.