Barrage: Farmers upset over ‘poor compensation’ for land

Trichy: In the wake of Madras high court’s order not to undertake construction work of the barrage across Kollidam river in Thanjavur until land acquisition is over and compensation is paid, the Tamil Nadu government has issued orders allocating compensation. However, farmers say the compensation mentioned in the GO will in no way be commensurate with the market rate. They have appealed to the government to revise it according to the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013. “As per the GO issued by Sandeep Saxena, additional chief secretary to the government for Water Resources Department, farmers will get a maximum of Rs 1.30 lakh per acre based on the government guideline value. That is not fair compensation,” said Swamimalai S Vimalnathan, secretary of Tamil Nadu Cauvery Farmers Protection Association, who is the petitioner in the case. He said that according to the above mentioned act, a farmer should be given four times the market value in rural areas and twice in urban areas.V Prem Anand, a farmer from Thittacherry who would forego two acres of his land, told TOI that land parcels are being sold here for Rs 18 lakh to Rs 30 lakh an acre as per the market value. “However, the government has allocated compensation ranging from Rs 90,000 to Rs 1.30 lakh an acre. This is not acceptable and it should be revised,” he added. The government has been constructing a barrage across the Kollidam with head sluices downstream of the Lower Anicut connecting Kumaramangalam in Nagapattinam district and Adhanur in Cuddalore district. This would help avert seawater intrusion and augment ground water table to irrigate about 6,000 acres in both the districts. Alleging that the government was constructing the barrage without finalizing the compensation to be given to farmers for acquiring their land, farmers moved the court seeking proper direction to the government.
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