Dainik Nation News Portal
DAINIK NATION BUREAU
Acquisition of land for the bullet train project hit a hurdle on Monday, when nearly 200 farmers from over 15 villages in Surat presented a memorandum to the district collector opposing the land acquisition notification for the project.
The memorandum, citing 14 objections to the notification, was presented by the group of farmers who had arrived on tractors and motorbikes to register their protest.
“The notification for land acquisition has been brought out without carrying out the environmental or social impact assessment,” Jayesh Patel, the farmers’ leader.
He said that there had been no consultation with the local bodies before bringing out the notification. He said that about 110 hectares of land across 21 villages was proposed to be acquired under the project, which was being opposed by the farmers.
“Legally, the district collector needs to declare the market rate of the land for which the acquisition notification is issued.But the Surat district collector has so far not declared the market rate of the land,” Patel said.
“The government has acquired enough land for the Delhi-Mumbai dedicated freight corridor. Even the Western Railways has sufficient land to take the project forward.
There is no reason why our lands need to be acquired now,” he said. He said that the group of protesting farmers was in touch with its counterparts in Palghar who too were opposed to parting with their lands.
The National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHRCL), the nodal body for implementing the bullet train project being pushed by the Narendra Modi led NDA government is also facing resistance in Palghar in Maharashtra for acquisition of land.ET
