India, Nov. 13 -- The completion of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway has triggered a modern-day land rush. From South Delhi to Gurugram, convoys of luxury SUVs now head toward Alwar every weekend in search of "farm plots" and "weekend estates." For city dwellers suffocating in toxic air, the promise of clean skies and open horizons feels irresistible. But beneath the drone shots and glossy brochures lies a harsher reality - much of this so-called "farmhouse boom" is unfolding in the most backward, inaccessible belts of southern Haryana and Mewat, far from the actual expressway corridor.

Developers are selling dreams along dusty rural roads - agricultural parcels rebranded as lifestyle "farm zones." Investors are shown hill views and rain-wash...