NAGPUR:
Krazy Castle amusement park owner Haldiram Foods has started dismantling some of its rides so that MahaMetro can dig the foundation of its pillars of Sitabuldi to Subhash Nagar stretch viaduct.
So far, one ride has been removed and more will follow suit. Work on construction of three pillars in the designated parking area has already begun. The park has, however, not been closed down and will remain open till school summer holidays end.
Sources in MahaMetro said that as Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT), owner of the land, was delaying officially handing over the land, the
Metro officials had directly held talks with the concessionaire Haldiram Foods. “Haldiram owners were very cooperative and agreed to remove their rides so that our work does not get delayed. We have started work on the basis of minutes of the meeting held by Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari on this issue,” said a source.
Kamal Agrawal of Haldiram said that they had agreed to remove the rides in public interest. “We don’t want to delay the project, which is vital for the city. However, we are firm on our demand for compensation. We must either get money or alternate land,” he added.
Haldiram has demanded a compensation of Rs162 crore from the NIT against the loss of its business for five years. Its lease runs till 2022. A committee headed by divisional commissioner Anup Kumar with district collector and municipal commissioner as other members will fix the compensation amount. This exercise has, however, got delayed due to transfer of IAS officers.
Initially, MahaMetro had sought only one-fourth of Krazy Castle land. It had offered to relocate the park rides at its own cost. However, Haldiram turned down the offer. According to the concessionaire if the rides were relocated and pillars came up within the park, it would lose its charm and he would suffer a loss. Haldiram, therefore, proposed that either the viaduct be shifted outside the park or NIT take back the entire land and pay compensation to it.
Left with no option, MahaMetro asked the NIT to hand over the entire land in January this year. In February, Gadkari directed the NIT to hand over the entire land to MahaMetro. The Metro agency would construct a new amusement park and Haldiram would be handed over the food court in this park as compensation. The minister also ordered constitution of Anup Kumar committee.
After playing the ball for months, NIT suddenly did a U-turn and told MahaMetro that it would have to compensate Haldiram before it was handed over Krazy Castle land. This meant that MahaMetro could not begin the work until Anup Kumar committee fixed the compensation. MahaMetro therefore decided to bypass the NIT and talked to Haldiram owners directly.
