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Swarajya Staff
May 12, 2018, 06:16 PM | Updated 06:16 PM IST
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Farmers whose land is to be acquired for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor (HSRC) will be compensated more than what is mandated by the Land Acquisition Act of 2013 say officials. The National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) is currently conducting the joint measurement survey which forms the last part of the land acquisition process, according to a PTI report.
Around 1,400 acres of land is being acquired of which 1,120 acres is privately owned land. A total of 6,000 land owners will be compensated.
We have decided the entitlement package philosophically, which is more than what is provided in the Land Acquisition Act. For example, we will be giving them 25 per cent extra as part of terms of consent. There is a lot of compensation for rehabilitation and resettlement. To allay their apprehensions, we will be providing each land loser an entitlement card, which will have his bank account number and all the items against which he is going to get compensation. And this will be monitored by the company till the time he gets his last compensation.NHSRCL Managing Director Achal Khare
Farmers groups in both Gujarat and Maharashtra have demanded that social impact assessment and food production loss assessments be carried out under the Central Act which Gujarat did away with in its amendment. They have also threatened agitations in both states if demands are not met and have sought support from the opposition Congress.
They have also demanded that the HSRC be built on existing railway land or land acquired for the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) instead.
The design phase of the project has been completed and construction is set to start soon.
Also Read: UPA Land Act Is Creating 20,000 Rural Crorepatis A Year – And Making Infrastructure Less Viable