Mumbai: Subhash Desai says, no violations in denotification of industrial lands

Mumbai: Subhash Desai, industries minister said he did not violated rules while denitrifying industrial land. The decision to denotify of land taken in case where farmers have strong opposition to acquisition process or land owner did not accepted compensated amount of land.

K P Bakshi committee report was submitted to the state government on March 21 and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, while making a statement in assembly on March 25 stated, the committee has given clean chit to Desai. “The decision Desai had taken were based on guidelines and no violation found by the committee,” Fadnavis had said.

Bakshi committee was appointed to probe any violation in industrial land in Nasik district. CM had announced the committee after request from Desai when opposition party members had made allegations against him during monsoon session in 2017.

Desai while speaking to media persons said, he did not de-notify any government land. “I took decision to denotify the land where people had opposed land acquisition by state. The land owners or farmers had not accepted compensation and in case where land owners demanded a huge rate of compensation, which was unaffordable for Maharashtra Industries Development Corporation (MIDC). Only such land was denotified,” said Desai.

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He said he was alleged that he denotified 31,500 hectares land in Dumala and Vadivare village in Igatpuri tehsil of Nasik district. “The fact is it was just 31.50 hectares land denotified. The reason was then ministers from Congress-Nationalist Congres Party (NCP) regime had already denotified 151 hectares land. The remaining land was scattered and was not useful for industrial development,” Desai said.

He added, “Nasik collector had given a report that farmers had demand Rs 2 to Rs 3.30 crore per hectares as compensation to the land which was huge. Third reason was the land was under scheduled area and hence acquisition was impossible.”

Desai said only 7767 hectares industrial land was denotified during his tenure as industries minister between the period 2015 to 2017.  “The process of land denotify in Khed Special Economic Zone (SEZ) (1866 Ha), Malegaon (2725 hectares) and Karla industrial area (731 hectares) was began in regime of erstwhile government in 2014. It was completed in my tenure,” Desai clarified.