The Hindu : Deve Gowda sees irregularities in `land deal'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 22, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore

Deve Gowda sees irregularities in `land deal'

By Our Special Correspondent

Bangalore Dec. 21 . The former Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda, today charged the Chief Minister, S.M. Krishna, and the Chief Secretary, B.S. Patil, of trying to part with Government land on the outskirts of Bangalore under the garb of acquiring land for the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor.

He told presspersons here that the expressway project was yet to be implemented although the memorandum of understanding was signed eight years ago. Real estate had become the focus of the all parties concerned in the project.

Mr. Gowda said the people of Kanakapura, Bangalore North, Kengeri, Ramanagaram, and Channapatna in particular were up in arms against the Government since their land, which had been acquired for the expressway project, was now being sold to private parties for huge amounts. "Even the Sringeri Sharada Math, which had been allotted 30 acres of land, is likely to be dispossessed of the property since the Chief Secretary has strictly directed the authorities to hand over this land. Many officials have stood against the move but are being pressured to sign as per the directions of the Chief Secretary. The Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board, which is in charge of acquiring land for the project, has already had several chairmen since successive chairmen have not yielded to the directions," he alleged.

Exhibiting copies of the Government's correspondence in the matter, including the repeated directions issued by the Chief Secretary directing the officials concerned to release the land in question, Mr. Deve Gowda said the `land scam' could turn out to be yet another major one akin to the stamp paper scam.

"Apart from the Government land, the authorities had acquired private land at a low cost from farmers and proposed to give the land to the Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise of the Kalyani group for lease at Rs. 10 an acre a year. The land, particularly in the vicinity of Bangalore, was now being set apart for private housing projects and for bulk allotment to other private parties at rates varying between Rs. 10 lakh to Rs. 35 lakh an acre."

While the land requirement for the expressway project was initially put at 8,000 acres, including the land required for developing five townships along the expressway in Bidadi, Ramanagaram, Channapatna, Maddur, and Srirangapatna, it had been revised to 29,000 acres now. The authorities had estimated that towards the six-lane expressway the land requirement would be not more than 2,000 acres.

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