BENGALURU: Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) officials are now busy preparing their defence over acquisition of a parcel of land near Hebbagodi Metro station. This land is crucial to construct the depot for its R V Road-Bommasandra Line, which forms Reach-5 of Metro’s Phase-II project.Out of the 54.5 acres required for the entire 18.5-km Reach, 30 acres are required for building the Hebbagodi depot alone, where all trains on this line will be stabled.
M S Channappa Goudar, General Manager (GM), Land Acquisition Cell, BMRCL, told Express that the land owners have taken BMRCL to court for the second time against the acquisition of their property.
“Of the 30 acres that we need, 25 acres are owned by the Gopalan Foundation. The group has challenged our acquisition of their property as they want to build a medical college and hospital on their land,” he said. The permission for starting a college was given by the state government in 2012 and no progress was made by the Foundation in the two-year deadline given for its completion, Goudar stated.
“The non-construction of the college is not the reason we are staking claim to the land. The DPR felt this was the best place to have our depot,” he said.
“Since there is land near our station, we are interested in this parcel of land. If the depot is located away from the station, the construction costs for BMRCL will soar,” he added.
Apart from 17 stabling lines (rail lines), a repair bay, electric substation and administration block are planned at the Hebbagodi depot. Except 14.8 acres, BMRCL has managed to acquire 39.7 acres required for the line, which includes the land for the depot.
Goudar said the landowners are willing to part with the land if they are offered `10,000 per square foot but
BMRCL was willing to pay `4,000 per square foot as solatium (compensation plus land acquisition cost). “This is agricultural land and this is the sum we are permitted to pay. However, the owners are looking at a rate that is being done for sites,” he added.Gopalan Foundation had filed a writ petition in the HC against the acquisition of their property through BMRCL’s final notification issued on April 4, 2016.
The court asked the Special Land Acquisition Officer of Metro to look into the matter in depth and later disposed of the case in June 2016. BMRCL later issued a fresh notification in connection with land acquisition on July 10, 2016.