The battle for 10 lakh acres

On 21 June 2023, an attempt to allow the Pakistan Armed Forces to take control of and develop over 10 lakh acres of state owned farmland for corporate agriculture was struck down by a landmark judgement of the Lahore High Court (LHC).

So what is going on? Essentially, the Pakistan Army was proposing that it be handed over these vast tracts of unused state land in Punjab to develop for agricultural use. The profits from this venture would be split between the Pakistan Army and the Government of Punjab. 

While plans had been underway since the start of the year, the matter first came to prominence in March 2023 when a notification marking the first transfer of land was floated publicly. Almost immediately the joint venture between the army and the provincial government was challenged in court over two basic points: can a caretaker government take such decisions and what interest and relevance does the army have in corporate farming?

The case went to the LHC and was struck down. While Justice Abid Hussain Chatta’s verdict nips this venture in the bud, the judgement is subject to further appeals and the matter could go to the Supreme Court of Pakistan. With the final decision over the agricultural development of such vast tracts of government owned land still up in the air, it is worth looking at what this whole case is about, and what the economic aspect of corporate farming can be.