ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses what extent the New Town Development Authority (NTDA) has been successful in implementing the social task of rehabilitation and integration of the local population. Since the initial years of development in the early 1970s, the process of acquisition of private land in New Bombay has been very slow and painful, and has been a major problem for everyone involved. After 25 years of project implementation, over 4,000 ha is to be acquired, and numerous law cases between landowners and the government are pending with the courts. In the northern part of New Bombay, where over the years the NTDA has gradually taken over all the municipal functions from the former local councils, the Sarpanj has lost all his former responsibilities but is a person very well placed to talk about the changes in the village over time.
