Page 1 of 1

Clarification about Auroville land being Government land (previously shared on AV

Development Announcements Telegram group 15.04.24).

Of late, we've been hearing a lot of "Auroville land is Government land". This message hopefully

clarifies this false narrative.

Auroville has been told on several occasions that its land is not Govt land in the past, especially

in the time of the highway issue (the Minister of Environment answering a question in

Parliament in 2022 stated explicitly that Auroville Land is not Government land). The Auroville

Foundation (AVF) is an autonomous body, and our land is registered in the name of AVF as patta

land like any private land owner. Govt land is differently registered, not with a patta.

Additionally, as per sections 3 and 6 of the AVF Act, all assets of the Sri Aurobindo Society which

had been temporarily vested in the Central Govt were subsequently vested in the Auroville

Foundation. Hence, the Act itself disposes the assets (including the land) away from the

Government into the Auroville Foundation, an Autonomous Body. And of course, the land

belongs to the Auroville Foundation in the totality of its components - including its Residents

Assembly - and not simply to the Office of the Secretary or the Governing Board. An

autonomous body is an independent body characterised by the fact it has internal authorities

and in our case there are three of them, not only one. Besides, every acre of Auroville has been

purchased via private donations, not any Govt money.

In summary, AV land is not Govt land and belongs to the Auroville Foundation - the entire

Foundation. The administrative staff can act only according to the decisions of the authorities of

the AVF (namely the GB, IAC and RA); and the Secretary can only operate within the limits

defined in the Act, the rules and regulations.