Greater Noida: UP govt to buy land for Jewar airport directly from farmers

A day after the ministry of civil aviation gave its in-principle approval for the greenfield Noida international airport in Jewar, the UP government has decided to directly purchase land from farmers instead of acquiring it by invoking the land acquisition Act, 2013.

The motive behind the move is to buy land quickly and not to take the longer route of land acquisition by using the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. The Act regulates land acquisition and lays down the procedure and rules for granting compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement of affected persons.

“The UP government has allocated a fund of Rs 4,000 crore for land buying in the first phase under which 1,400 hectares of agricultural land is to be bought through agreement. The state government has decided to buy land through agreement because it will save a lot of time and help in development of the project as per the deadline,” Meerut divisional commissioner Dr Prabhat Kumar said. He is also the chairman of the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida), the nodal agency for the project.

On the whole, the government wants to acquire 5,000 hectares for the airport and aviation hub proposed in Jewar. The Gautam Buddha University (GBU) has already conducted a social impact assessment survey in the villages where airport project is proposed. According to the GBU survey, a majority of farmers wants to give their land for the airport project as it will positively impact their economic condition and bring about a social change.

If the UP government acquires the land by using sections of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, it will take years to acquire the land.

Under the 2013 Act, the Gautam Budh Nagar district administration will acquire the land on behalf of the state government and will have to invoke sections 4 and 6 — a process to give an opportunity to farmers to raise objections, if any.

But the state government is not in a mood to use these sections because it will take longer to acquire the land as resolving farmers’ objections is a lengthy process.

“A majority of farmers are willing to give their land for the project because it will benefit them immensely. But if a few farmers refuse to give land through agreement, we will use the sections of the 2013 Act to acquire the land because we need to procure the land for this project,” Kumar said.

The authority will buy the land at a rate which is applicable in the area. “We will buy the land through agreement at a rate of Rs 1,895 per square metre from farmers,” Kumar said.