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According to the Greater Noida Industrial Development
Authority (GNIDA), the expressway will cut through agricultural land in
190 villages of Gautambudh Nagar, Aligarh, Mathura and Agra districts.
Officials, however, said spiralling property prices in these areas with
private developers moving in would make the acquisition process difficult.
The Sunday Express visited Mursadpur village in Greater Noida that stands
first in line of the expressway and villagers were already anticipating
high prices. The district administration had been entrusted with the job
of acquisition while Jaiprakash Associates, which will construct the
expressway, will recover costs through toll tax.
“Three years ago, when work on the expressway first began, the government
promised Rs 3.2 lakh per bigha. Now, private developers have bought land
at almost Rs 20 lakh per bigha in our village,” said 85-year-old Jaggu
Singh Pradhan, who owns 12.5 bighas of farm land in Mursadpur. “We have
been hearing that our land will be acquired for four years now. We want a
good price,” he added.
The Taj Expressway, that will branch off from the Noida-Greater Noida
Expressway, is being constructed largely through virgin area along the
Yamuna, comprising mostly rural areas. That the Expressway will take off
much pressure from the congested NH-2 which runs through cities like
Faridabad, Ballabhgarh and Palwal, translating to a five-hour ride to
Agra. The Expressway will instead touch en-route the proposed Gautam
Buddha University, the Taj SEZ and International Hub airport. Separate
roads leading to Mathura and Vrindavan will branch off from it. There will
be service lanes on both side besides ribbon development across a
2,500-hectare area at five to seven locations with commercial, amusement,
industrial, institutional and residential elements.
Sources said Jaiprakash Associates had written to the UP Government a
couple of months back asking for speedy acquisition of land so that
construction could begin to achieve the 2010 target. Noida Additional DM
(Land Acquisition) Ajaydeep Singh told The Sunday Express that the
acquisition process would be smooth. “The UP Government has ordered the
acquisition process but we are waiting for the Greater Noida Authority to
give its final proposal. We will determine land prices by analysing the
sale deeds and ensure that the villagers get a good price,” said Singh.
Acquiring land in other districts of Aligarh, Mathura and Agra would be
the responsibility of the respective district administration.
Taj Expressway: troubled history
• Rs 2,250-crore agreement for the Taj Expressway signed during Mayawati’s
tenure with Jayprakash Associates on February 7, 2003.
• Within a month of coming to power in 2003, Mulayam halts construction,
orders an inquiry by Justice Ranganath Mishra on the grounds that Mayawati
had hurried through the project and committed irregularities. Allahabad HC
disbanded the inquiry.
• Another committee, comprising former Chief Vigilance Commissioner V S
Mathur and district judge L S P Singh, constituted. This too disbanded on
court orders.
• A third committee, of Justice S. Narayan, appointed by Mulayam Singh
Yadav last May not only gave Mayawati a clean chit but also strongly
recommended that the project be implemented right away as it is of
“immense public interest”. On October 12, 2006, Mulayam granted the
contract again to Jai Prakash Associates.
by http://economictimes.indiatimes.com
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