( 1 ) THE petitioner herein has challenged under Art. 226 of the Constitution notifications under secs. 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act. The petitioner is the owner of agricultural land bearing survey No. 20 (paiki) admeasuring 4 Acres 26 Gunthas situated at village Sankari in Bardoli Taluka of Surat District. His land is part of survey No. 20/2. A portion of the said land admeasuring about one acre is waste and uncultivable and the remaining portion of the land is cultivable. The land is perennially irrigated and is watered by irrigation canal supplying water from Kakarapar Water Bund Scheme. The petitioners and his family members are cultivating the land personally. Sugarcane is the main crop grown in the land and the income derived by cultivation of this land is the main source of income of the petitioner and his family members. It is the petitioners case that as far back as May 1 1968 a notification under sec. 4 of the Land Acquisition Act was issued stating that the land of the petitioner was likely to be needed for the construction of houses of Halpatis under the Halpati Housing Scheme. The petitioner opposed this proposed acquisition inter alia on the ground that waste and uncultivable land either belonging to the State Government or vested in the Panchayats was available in the vicinity and that land could be suitably utilised for housing Halpatis and that apart from the Government land and the land vested in the Panchayats there were waste and uncultivable lands owned by private individuals which could be suitably acquired at a cheaper rate and made available to the Halpatis. Subsequently on April 20 1971 the Government cancelled the notification dated May 1 1968 that had been issued under sec. 4 of the Land Acquisition Act. Another notification was issued under sec. 4 on September 4 1973 stating that the portion of the land admeasuring 0. 74 Hectares and 57 square metres was likely to be needed for a public purpose namely construction of houses for Halpatis under the Halpatis Housing Scheme. The petitioner filed his objection under sec. 5-A of the Land Acquisition Act contending inter alia that the notification was issued as a deliberate attempt to harass and subdue the petitioner who had launched a campaign against imposition of ceiling on the holding of agricultural land. The notification was published in the Gazette of October 4 1973 Thereafter a notification was issued by the Government of Gujarat on September 4 1976 under sec. 6 of the Land Acquisition Act and this notification under sec. 6 came to be published in the Gujarat Government Gazette of September 16 1976 The notification under sec. 6 as originally issued and published in the Government Gazette was faulty inasmuch as no public purpose whatsoever was stated in the notification. In the body of the notification it was mentioned that the land was likely to be needed for the public purpose specified in column 4 of the Schedule to the notification and even the satisfaction of the Govern. ment was recorded in the following terms:- that the said land is needed to be acquired at the public expense for the purpose specified in column 4 of the schedule hereto and the declaration as contemplated by subsec. (1) of sec. 6 was also with reference to column 4 of the Schedule to the notification and in column 4 in the Schedule under the heading public purpose for which the land is needed there was no mention of any public purpose and that column was blank. The notification as published in the Gujarat Government Gazette of September 16 1976 also showed column 4 of the Schedule as blank. Thereafter on October 20 1976 an Erratum was issued by the Government of Gujarat mentioning that in the Schedule to the notification dated September 14 1976 in column 4 under the head Public purpose for which the land is needed the following words should be read:- for construction of houses for Halpatis under Halpatis Housing Scheme. Thus the blank which was found in t