THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE N.V. RAMANA WRIT PETITION No.25672 of 2006 ORDER: It is the case of the petitioner that she is the owner and possessor of an extent of Acs.0.74 cents of land situated in Sy.No.81/7A of Krishnayapalem Village, Tadepalligudem Mandal, West Godavari District, and that pattadar pass book was also issued in her favour. While so, the second respondent- District Collector, West Godavari District at Eluru issued the impugned notification dated 04.10.2006 in Ref:ROC No.F5/Sw/408/2006, under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’) proposing to acquire the land of the petitioner in an extent of Ac.0.57 cents, out of the above said extent of land, for providing house sites to weaker sections under Indiramma Programme. Questioning the same, she filed this writ petition. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the land proposed to be acquired is agricultural land and acquisition thereof for non-agricultural purpose, without converting it for such use, is contrary to law and without there being any urgency, the respondents have dispensed with the 5-A enquiry, which is arbitrary and illegal. A detailed counter-affidavit is filed on behalf of the respondents stating that notification under Section 4 (1) of the Act, proposing to acquire the land of the petitioner, was published as per the procedure contemplated under the Act and, in view of urgency, enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act was dispensed with, under Section 17 (4) of the Act, and declaration under Section 6 of the Act, which was approved on 29.10.2006, was published in two news papers on 05.11.2006 and in the Gazette on 06.11.2006. It is further stated that notice under Sections 9 (1) and 10 of the Act, for conducting award enquiry, was published in the Notice Board of Gram Panchayat on 28.11.2006 and the contents of the publication were also informed to the General Public by way of ‘tom tom’ and that notice under Sections 9 (3) and 10 of the Act was served on the petitioner asking her to attend the award enquiry before the third respondent on 08.12.2006. However, the petitioner instead of attending the enquiry, straight away approached this Court, filed the present writ petition and obtained interim stay of all further proceedings pursuant to the impugned notification and, thereby, all further proceedings have been stalled. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Assistant Government Pleader for Land Acquisition appearing for the respondents and perused the record. Though it is the case of the petitioner that the subject land, being agricultural land, cannot be acquired for non-agricultural purpose, without converting it for such use, the fact remains that this Court in R.V.R. Prasad v. District Collector, Krishna District at Machilipatnam[1], has categorically held that the acquisition proceedings initiated by the authorities cannot be invalidated on the ground of non-conversion of agricultural land for being used for non- agricultural purpose and thus the contention of the petitioner to the contrary fails. So far as the dispensation of 5-A enquiry is concerned, it is to be noted that the purpose for which the land of the petitioner was proposed to be acquired is to provide house sites to weaker sections and the enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act was dispensed with, by invoking urgency clause under Section 17 (4) of the Act. In identical case in Butchi Sitayamma Garu and others v. Collector, East Godavari District and another[2], where the lands were also proposed to be acquired for the purpose of providing house sites to weaker sections, this Court has categorically held that providing house sites to weaker sections is an on going policy of the State and it is not an overnight decision nor the economic plight of the people, a suddenly occurring emergency, and thus invocation of urgency and dispensing with the salutary process of enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act, in such circumstances, is arbitrary and, therefore, quashed the declaration issued under Section 6 of the Act. In view of the above settled position of law, the action of the respondents in dispensing with the enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act, by invoking urgency clause, for acquisition of the subject land for the purpose of providing house sites to weaker sections, cannot be sustained. Accordingly, the draft declaration dated 29.10.2006, issued under Section 6 of the Act and all the consequential proceedings are set aside. If the land of petitioner is still required to be acquired, the respondents shall conduct necessary enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act, duly issuing notice to the petitioner and considering her objections, if any raised, to the proposed acquisition, and pass appropriate orders and take further necessary action in accordance therewith. The writ petition is allowed to the extent indicated above. No order as to costs. N.V. RAMANA, J Date: 18.03.2010 va [1] 2008 (3) ALD 198 [2] 2008 (6) ALD (NOC 66)