HC refuses to stay land acquisition process for Nashik ring road project

Nashik: The Bombay high court has refused to grant an interim stay on the land acquisition for the Nashik Parikrama Marg, commonly known as the ring road project, which is planned ahead of the Simhastha Kumbh Mela.Farmers from several villages, including Chandsi, Matori and Makhmalabad, had challenged the acquisition process, alleging violations of protections granted to Scheduled Areas under the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA). They claimed that mandatory procedures, such as obtaining proper consent from gram sabhas, were not followed and sought an interim halt to the project.A senior district administration official said, "The Bombay HC heard the petition and rejected the plea for an interim stay based on the information provided by state govt. This decision comes as a relief, as work on the project is progressing rapidly to ensure completion before the Simhastha Kumbh Mela."One of the petitioners, Sudarshan Patil, said while the court refused to stay the work, the matter was still under consideration. "We remain hopeful of getting justice," he said."Our main contention is that govt has failed to carry out social impact assessment of the ring road and it has taken exemption. We have also objected to the process in which the govt has failed to acquire land from villages under PESA Act where it can do so only when all other options have been exhausted," Patil said.He also raised concerns about the lack of planning for the rehabilitation of affected farmers. "Govt has not adequately addressed relief and rehabilitation for those who will lose their land and livelihood," Patil said.Although the petitioners had sought an interim stay on the project, the court has rejected the request. However, it has granted state govt time to respond to the issues raised in the petition. "We will wait for the government's reply and proceed accordingly," Patil added.