Noida Authority claims major breakthrough in land crisis
Addressing the villagers' long pending demand of sorting out abadi disputes, the Authority has now agreed to regularise all current abadi claims and will additionally give all villagers eight per cent developed plots instead of the earlier six percent against their total land acquired.(PTI Photo)
GREATER NOIDA: In what it claims is a major 'breakthrough' in the ongoing Noida Extension crisis, the Greater Noida Authority on Saturday claimed to have finally reached upon a settlement with the villagers of Patwari where last month, theAllahabad High court had denotified 589 hecatres of land, affecting a dozen developers and thousands of buyers. As per Saturday's agreement, the Authority will pay the Patwari villagers a hiked compensation at the rate of Rs 1400 per square metre instead of the earlier 850 per sq mt and the villagers will withdraw all petitions against land acquisition from the Courts.
Addressing the villagers' long pending demand of sorting out abadi disputes, the Authority has now agreed to regularise all current abadi claims and will additionally give all villagers eight per cent developed plots instead of the earlier six percent against their total land acquired. A host of other development and rehabilitation benefits including 10 per cent reservation for the children of Patwari farmers in educational institutions, skilled and semi skilled training for the unemployed, roads, sporting facilities among other things have been promised too.
In a meeting spanning over three days, senior Authority officials negotiated with a group of 15 village 'representatives' from Patwari who were in turn being advised by a group of BSP leaders like Uttar Pradesh Minister Thakur Jaiveer Singh, MP from Gautam Buddh Nagar Surendar Nagar and D P Yadav. On Saturday finally, the Authority gave in to the Patwari villagers' two main demands viz. A substantial hike in compensation for the land already acquired and a blanket regularisation of all abadi claims. In return, all those villagers in Patwari who have approached the courts earlier seeking to reclaim their land will have to withdraw their pending petitions or, will have to take the required steps for recalling their petitions in case an order has already been passed on them.
"As per the instructions from chief minister Mayawati, we have been trying to sort out the land crisis. The Patwari settlement has come with the consent of all parties and is crucial to the development of the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area," said Mohinder Singh, chairperson, GNIDA. "We strive to maintain the pace and the expanse of development work in the entire area," he added.
"The farmers'' interests has always been our priority and we have studied the farmers' demands at length and finally reached a compromise that suits them best," said Thakur Jaiveer Singh.
"A group of 15 villagers who are the members of the Patwari gram Samiti had been in talks with the Authority and the ministers on behalf of the village. We are happy that the farmers' will now get their due," said Race Pal Yadav, the village head of Patwari village. Race Pal had approached the court earlier this year seeking denotification of around 200 bighas of his land and is now willing to withdraw that petition. "I will withdraw my petition at the earliest and get the other 30 odd villagers who went to court to do the same," he said.
However, when TOI visited Patwari on Saturday, several villagers voiced their dissatisfaction with the 'agreement.' The villagers instead claim that the agreement has been "forced upon them by the Authority and other vested interests." "I do not want a compromise and simply want my land back from the Authority as directed by the earlier court order. Several others like me have made this clear to RacePal however, even he is being coerced into accepting this agreement," said Harbans Singh, whose 250 bighas of farmland was acquired in Patwari in 2008.
On July 19, the Allahabad HC had denotified 589 hectares of land in Patwari that is the second largest piece of acquired land in the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area. The GNIDA had acquired the land in Patwadi three years ago after invoking the urgency clause on the pretext of laying down "industrial units" and 90 percent of the villagers eventually claimed their due compensation. Besides "Rs 1600-crore-worth" of real estate investments have already been put in the area. However, a little over two dozen villagers approached the HC this year submitting 50 odd petitions seeking the entire acquired land back. The HC order on the Patwari land had complicated matters in the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area since developers had gone ahead with major construction work in the area.
Addressing the villagers' long pending demand of sorting out abadi disputes, the Authority has now agreed to regularise all current abadi claims and will additionally give all villagers eight per cent developed plots instead of the earlier six percent against their total land acquired. A host of other development and rehabilitation benefits including 10 per cent reservation for the children of Patwari farmers in educational institutions, skilled and semi skilled training for the unemployed, roads, sporting facilities among other things have been promised too.
In a meeting spanning over three days, senior Authority officials negotiated with a group of 15 village 'representatives' from Patwari who were in turn being advised by a group of BSP leaders like Uttar Pradesh Minister Thakur Jaiveer Singh, MP from Gautam Buddh Nagar Surendar Nagar and D P Yadav. On Saturday finally, the Authority gave in to the Patwari villagers' two main demands viz. A substantial hike in compensation for the land already acquired and a blanket regularisation of all abadi claims. In return, all those villagers in Patwari who have approached the courts earlier seeking to reclaim their land will have to withdraw their pending petitions or, will have to take the required steps for recalling their petitions in case an order has already been passed on them.
"As per the instructions from chief minister Mayawati, we have been trying to sort out the land crisis. The Patwari settlement has come with the consent of all parties and is crucial to the development of the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area," said Mohinder Singh, chairperson, GNIDA. "We strive to maintain the pace and the expanse of development work in the entire area," he added.
"The farmers'' interests has always been our priority and we have studied the farmers' demands at length and finally reached a compromise that suits them best," said Thakur Jaiveer Singh.
"A group of 15 villagers who are the members of the Patwari gram Samiti had been in talks with the Authority and the ministers on behalf of the village. We are happy that the farmers' will now get their due," said Race Pal Yadav, the village head of Patwari village. Race Pal had approached the court earlier this year seeking denotification of around 200 bighas of his land and is now willing to withdraw that petition. "I will withdraw my petition at the earliest and get the other 30 odd villagers who went to court to do the same," he said.
However, when TOI visited Patwari on Saturday, several villagers voiced their dissatisfaction with the 'agreement.' The villagers instead claim that the agreement has been "forced upon them by the Authority and other vested interests." "I do not want a compromise and simply want my land back from the Authority as directed by the earlier court order. Several others like me have made this clear to RacePal however, even he is being coerced into accepting this agreement," said Harbans Singh, whose 250 bighas of farmland was acquired in Patwari in 2008.
On July 19, the Allahabad HC had denotified 589 hectares of land in Patwari that is the second largest piece of acquired land in the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area. The GNIDA had acquired the land in Patwadi three years ago after invoking the urgency clause on the pretext of laying down "industrial units" and 90 percent of the villagers eventually claimed their due compensation. Besides "Rs 1600-crore-worth" of real estate investments have already been put in the area. However, a little over two dozen villagers approached the HC this year submitting 50 odd petitions seeking the entire acquired land back. The HC order on the Patwari land had complicated matters in the Noida Extension-Greater Noida area since developers had gone ahead with major construction work in the area.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment