The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Large-scale acquisition of land ill-conceived: Patil

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Saturday, Jul 14, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Large-scale acquisition of land ill-conceived: Patil

Staff Reporter

‘It will only benefit real-estate developers’

Move for adjournment motion in Council denied
Subject will be discussed during ongoing session

BANGALORE: The Government’s move to acquire 1,19,561 acres of land around Bangalore for townships, special economic zones and other infrastructure projects is ill-conceived and will only benefit real-estate developers from outside the State and leave hundreds of farmers landless and thousands without a livelihood, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council H.K. Patil has said.

In his preliminary submission on Thursday in support of an adjournment motion on the land acquisition exercise, Mr. Patil said it was particularly alarming that in the case of the Nandagudi SEZ, the Cabinet had given clearance to allot a part of the 12,500 acres of land to a Mumbai-based company, SKIL Infrastructure. It was common knowledge that the company had failed to execute a similar project in Navi Mumbai and had sold the land to the Reliance group subsequently.

Mr. Patil said the Revenue Department had reported that these were “prime lands”, which should not be allowed to pass into private hands or alienated for development.

NOC denied

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board had refused to provide no-objection certificate for this project, and the Forest and Environment Department had also expressed misgivings about it.

Yet 4,745 acres of the 12,500 acres acquired through the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) was being allotted to the company.

In Ramanagaram too, 60,961 acres of land was being acquired for five townships. Though it was said that it would be ensured that the displacement of human habitation would be minimal and water bodies and forests would not be disturbed or agricultural lands acquired, a good portion of the land identified for acquisition did not conform to the conditions.

After repeatedly denying that 1,000 acres of land had been acquired on behalf of Gandhi City for Advanced R&D Ltd. at Dadaamannugudde Kasaba hobli in Ramanagaram, the Government had gone ahead with the process.

These were issues affecting development. The future of Bangalore city should be debated threadbare and hence he was seeking to move the adjournment motion, Mr. Patil said.

Discussion allowed

‘Mukhyamantri’ Chandru, who was in the Chair, ruled that this did not merit an adjournment motion, but allowed a thorough discussion, which will be taken up in the course of the ongoing session.

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