Farmers, whose land had been notified for the Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project 18 years ago, have urged the government to drop the project if they cannot be compensated as per the 2014 Act.
Staging a protest before the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) office on Monday after the state government’s intention to revive the 65-kilometre road project, the farmers, gathering under the banner ‘PRR Raitha Haagu Niveshanadara Sangha’, met Chief Minister K Siddaramaiah to present a memorandum with the compensation demand.
The forum said the BDA issued a preliminary notification to acquire 1,818 acres of land in 2006, while the final notification came a year later. Over the last 18 years, the BDA did not proceed with the formalities of acquiring the land due to paucity of funds to compensate the land losers.
In 2022, the BDA issued a preliminary notification to acquire 750 acres additional land to connect the missing links, integrate PRR with NICE Road and build toll plazas.
In the memorandum submitted to the chief minister, the forum pointed out that thousands of houses and layouts have come up on the notified land due to delay in acquisition.
“The notified land passes through six lakes and the Petronet gas pipeline,” a farmer said. The going market rate for one acre of land in the notified area is anywhere between Rs 10 crore and Rs 14 crore, the farmers stated.
The protesting farmers asked the government to drop the PRR project altogether if it does not have funds to compensate them as per the old Act.