Bengaluru, September 21:
Karnataka Water Resources Minister N. Cheluvarayaswamy on Monday directed officials to accelerate the land acquisition process under the Upper Krishna Project (UKP)-III and ensure that pending beneficiaries under Phases I and II receive compensation on priority. He also instructed authorities to carry out land acquisition under Phase III strictly in accordance with government norms and on a proportionate basis.
Chairing a high-level review meeting at Vidhana Soudha on the acquisition of land in 184 villages likely to be submerged by the backwaters of the Almatti reservoir, the Minister said officials must strictly adhere to government guidelines and avoid arbitrary decisions. He added that Ministers and legislators representing the project region could submit written suggestions on the phased implementation of land acquisition.
Referring to the Government Order issued last year, Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy said compensation rates for agricultural land had already been notified. In cases where there was ambiguity regarding the valuation of buildings, officials were instructed to seek clarification from the department. He said the matter would also be placed before the Chief Minister, if required, to issue further policy directions.
The Minister also warned of legal action against those allegedly entering into high-value sale agreements in proposed rehabilitation centres. He said Village Panchayats had been entrusted with identifying land for resettlement and that any irregularities in the rehabilitation process would be dealt with firmly.
Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy announced that a separate meeting would soon be convened to address issues relating to rehabilitation shelters and other concerns of project-affected families.
The meeting reviewed the phased acquisition of land in all 184 villages, with priority to be given to 79 villages where acquisition is already under way. Another 87 villages, where notifications are yet to be issued, will be taken up based on the extent of flood impact, while the remaining villages will be considered in the final phase.
The government has set a target of disbursing compensation for around 15,000 acres during the current financial year out of the 75,563 acres identified for acquisition. Raising concerns over delays in Vijayapura district, Minister M.B. Patil urged the government to release compensation immediately for at least 1,000 acres in Babaleshwar constituency from the total 5,600 acres identified there.
Responding to the demand, Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy assured that the proposed ₹3,000 crore allocation would be shared equally among the six Assembly constituencies covered under the project, with ₹500 crore earmarked for each constituency.
The UKP-III project envisages raising the storage level of the Almatti Dam from 519.60 metres to 524.256 metres, enabling storage of an additional 100 TMC of water while facilitating the implementation of nine irrigation sub-projects.
The project requires acquisition of 1,33,867 acres of land. Compensation, which earlier stood at ₹2 lakh per acre, was revised last year to ₹40 lakh per acre for irrigated land and ₹30 lakh per acre for dry land. While acquisition has been completed in 18 villages, land measuring 71,284 acres across the remaining 166 villages is yet to be acquired. Officials informed the meeting that several compensation-related disputes are also being resolved through Lok Adalats.
The meeting was attended by Ministers M.B. Patil, Vijayanand Kashappanavar and Laxman Savadi, former Minister R.B. Thimmapur, Legislative Council Deputy Chairperson Umashree, Additional Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta, and senior officials of the Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam Limited (KBJNL).
Following the review meeting, the Minister also held discussions with farmers affected by the backwaters of Ramdurga Lake in Govindapalli and Karadigudda villages of Devadurga taluk. He assured them that compensation would be processed after officials conduct a detailed study and submit a report on the 243.43 acres affected by backwater inundation.
