Land Acquisition
Land Acquisition for LDA IT City (Sultanpur Road) — Villages, Model, Compensation and Current Stage
LDA's IT City (also called CG City IT Zone) on Sultanpur Road is being assembled not through a conventional cash-award acquisition but through a land-pooling arrangement in which farmers hand over land and get back a share of developed plots. This page sets out what is documented about the model, the villages, the money involved, and where the process stands as of July 2026.
| Acquisition model | Land Pooling Policy — landowners get 25% of contributed land back as developed plots, not a cash award |
|---|---|
| Villages covered | 11 villages, all in Mohanlalganj tehsil, Lucknow district |
| Phase-1 sale-ban zone | 686.66 hectares — private buying/selling banned by LDA |
| Land registered under pooling (by late 2025) | ~281.25 acres, ~₹300 crore in recorded transfers |
| State funds released for land acquisition/development | ₹1,600 crore (shared across IT City, Wellness City, Naimish Nagar, Varun Vihar) |
| HCL IT/ITeS cluster investment | ₹1,500 crore PPP over 100 acres |
| Phase 1 plot lottery | 549 plots allotted to farmer-landowners, 10 March 2026 |
| Phase 2 plot lottery | 415 plots allotted, 22 May 2026 |
| Enforcement action | 29 unauthorised plots demolished across the 11 villages in a four-month drive (reported mid-2025) |
Background: from SEZ to township
The IT City land story predates the current land-pooling push. The Uttar Pradesh government awarded the IT SEZ project on Sultanpur Road to Vama Sundari Investment, HCL Technologies' investment arm, with the land for the project handed over free of cost to the State IT & Electronics Department in October 2012. The developer obtained 100 acres (40.469 hectares) for which the SEZ was notified on 23 November 2015, split into 24.430 hectares of processing area and 16.039 hectares of non-processing area, of which 15.779 hectares was later de-notified. A foundation stone for a larger 830-acre CG City was laid in October 2014, but progress stalled amid land acquisition disputes and administrative changes following the 2017 state government transition. In 2024, LDA initiated formal land acquisition under a land-pooling model, compensating donors with 25% of developed land, which expedited assembly of the required parcels.
Acquisition model: pooling, not a compulsory award
Unlike a classic RFCTLARR-style acquisition with a fixed cash award, IT City land is being assembled through a consent-based pooling scheme. The project is being developed using a Land Pooling Model, which has avoided the traditional delays of forced acquisition. Under this model, the government does not buy the land in the traditional sense; instead it invites farmers to become partners, and for every acre a farmer surrenders, they are guaranteed the return of 25% of the developed land as residential or commercial plots. Property-market reporting on the scheme claims the approach has largely avoided the litigation that has dogged past UP land projects: the LDA has secured over 90% of the required land for the first phase without a single major protest, a feat that is being studied by development authorities across India. That figure comes from real-estate advisory sources rather than an LDA press release, so it should be read as an industry claim, not an audited number.
Villages and districts covered
All the land being pooled for IT City sits in a single district. The 11 villages are Rakibabad, Sonai, Kajehra, Bhatwara, Moharikhurd, Sikandarpur Amolia, Bakkas, Pahadnagar Tikaria, Siddhpura, Parheta, and Khujaili — all in the Mohanlalganj tehsil of Lucknow district, Uttar Pradesh. The UP government has imposed restrictions on private land purchase and sale in 10 of these villages to prevent land speculation and ensure smooth acquisition by LDA. Individual villages surface repeatedly in project reporting: the original 100-acre SEZ plot sits at Village Kanjehara & Mastemau, Chak Gajaria Farms, Sultanpur Road, and early pooling activity was concentrated in Mohari Khurd, strategically located between Sultanpur National Highway and Kisan Path, where a joint LDA team took possession of 46 bighas of land and set up a site office. Separately, LDA has begun the paperwork to widen the restricted zone: the process to suspend private land transactions in 11 villages of the LDA IT City expansion zone has been initiated, and after DM approval the final notification from the state government is expected soon.
Compensation: what landowners actually receive
There is no published fixed cash rate per acre or bigha for IT City land — the compensation is structured as a land-for-land swap. Landowners who contribute their fields receive 25% of the land back as fully developed residential or commercial plots within the township, rather than a one-time payment. Farmers who pool their land receive back 25% of their contributed land area as fully developed residential plots with civic amenities — roads, water, sewage, electricity — which reporting frames as superior to a one-time cash payment at circle rate. Market commentary on land values in the affected corridor (not an official LDA rate) states that agricultural land in these villages, valued at ₹1.35 crore per bigha in late 2024, has touched ₹1.85–2.10 crore per bigha in early 2026 — a reflection of speculative pricing around the project rather than a fixed compensation figure. For context, LDA's adjoining Wellness City scheme on the same corridor uses a different formula: farmers there are receiving compensation at double the urban circle rate, plus developed residential plots, which shows LDA has not applied one uniform cash-plus-plot formula across all its Sultanpur Road projects.
Budget and funding
State-level funding for land acquisition and development has been released in tranches rather than as one lump project budget. The state government released ₹1,600 crore for further land acquisition and development across IT City, Wellness City, Naimish Nagar and Varun Vihar — a shared allocation, not an IT City-only figure. On the anchor-investment side, the dedicated IT/ITeS technology cluster of 100 acres is a ₹1,500 crore investment being developed as a Public-Private Partnership with HCL Technologies. Independent tracking of pooling activity puts registered progress at registrations for 281.25 acres and approximately ₹300 crore in transfers by late 2025.
Disputes, restrictions and enforcement
The project's earlier avatar did run into acquisition trouble: progress stalled amid land acquisition disputes and administrative changes following the 2017 state government transition. The current pooling-based iteration is presented by LDA and property advisers as largely dispute-free, though this claim comes mainly from real-estate industry commentary rather than court records. To keep speculative buying/selling from disrupting the pooling process, LDA has taken direct action: the LDA has banned the buying and selling of land in the Phase-1 area (686.66 hectares) of the IT City project, and has run a demolition drive against illegal plotting across the 11 villages, clearing 29 unauthorized plots in four months. Buyers are separately warned that private land transactions in 10 of these villages are currently restricted by the UP government, and that even in the unrestricted Phase-2 area, every deal needs the exact Gata number and official land records checked before purchase.
Current stage (as of July 2026)
Land pooling and plot allotment for IT City have moved through two allotment rounds so far. LDA officially launched the IT City project on 28 February 2026 with the formal release of the layout plan and master map, after farmers and landowners from the 11 villages who completed their land pooling agreements with LDA by 31 January 2026 became eligible for the Phase 1 plot lottery. On 10 March 2026, LDA allotted 549 developed residential plots to eligible farmers and landowners at Mars Auditorium, Indira Gandhi Pratishthan, with allotment letters officially released on 22 April 2026. A second-phase lottery was conducted on 22 May 2026, allotting 415 plots to farmers who had participated in the Land Pooling Scheme. Public registration for general buyers is expected to open in the coming weeks, with updates to be posted on ldalucknow.in and registration.ldalucknow.in. Note that the total footprint quoted for the project has grown and varied across reporting periods — from a 1,696-acre project reported in May 2025 to a 2,660-acre township reported from late 2025 into early 2026 to an approximately 3,490-acre scheme in the 2026 buyer guide — so any acreage figure should be treated as time-stamped rather than fixed.
Development phases
Frequently asked questions
Is IT City land being acquired by force or with farmer consent?
It is consent-based. LDA uses a Land Pooling Model, which avoided the traditional delays of forced acquisition, rather than a compulsory cash-award process.
How many villages are affected, and where?
11 villages, all in the Mohanlalganj tehsil of Lucknow district: Rakibabad, Sonai, Kajehra, Bhatwara, Moharikhurd, Sikandarpur Amolia, Bakkas, Pahadnagar Tikaria, Siddhpura, Parheta, and Khujaili.
What do farmers get instead of a cash rate per acre?
Landowners who contribute land receive 25% of it back as fully developed, serviced plots rather than a fixed cash compensation figure.
Can I currently buy agricultural land in these villages?
LDA has banned sale/purchase in the 686.66-hectare Phase-1 zone, and 10 of the 11 villages face UP government restrictions on private transactions; any Phase-2 purchase needs careful Gata-number verification.
Has the project faced land disputes?
The earlier SEZ-era version of the project stalled amid land acquisition disputes after 2017. The current pooling-based version is reported by LDA and property advisers to have secured most Phase-1 land without major litigation, though this is largely industry-sourced, not court-verified.
How much money has been allocated for land acquisition?
The state government released ₹1,600 crore for further land acquisition and development shared across IT City, Wellness City, Naimish Nagar and Varun Vihar, separate from the ₹1,500 crore PPP investment in the 100-acre HCL IT/ITeS cluster.
What stage is the project at right now (July 2026)?
Two allotment rounds are complete — 549 plots in March 2026 and 415 plots in May 2026 — with allotment letters issued and general public registration expected to open soon.
Sources
- LDA IT City Lucknow 2026: Sector Map, Plots, Price & Lottery Guide
- LDA's Massive 2660-Acre IT City Township near Sultanpur Road
- LDA Wellness City Lucknow 2026: Launch Date, Price List, Village List
- IT City Lucknow 2026: Location, Master Plan, Plots & Investment Guide
- Lucknow's Upcoming Identity: A Massive 1696-Acre IT City on Sultanpur Road
- Lucknow's Leap Forward: How the 2660-Acre UP IT City & Its Land Pooling Works
- IT City, Lucknow — Grokipedia
- IT City, Lucknow - Wikipedia
- Minutes of Meeting of the Approval Committee, HCL IT City SEZ (NSEZ)
- IT City – Lucknow Development Authority
- Lucknow's Real Estate Boom: Circle Rates Surge Up To 50%