BENGALURU: The Karnataka cabinet on Thursday directed the Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) to allot sites to 1,453 farmers who had given up their land for the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project, setting a two-month deadline for the process.
Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who heads the cabinet sub-committee on BMIC project, said the decision was taken in accordance with the provisions of a recent Supreme Court order, which allows the State Government to take a decision after considering all aspects of the matter.
Dr Parameshwara said that farmers had voluntarily parted with their land when the framework agreement for the project was being prepared. The then District Magistrate had assured them a 30x40ft site for every acre of land and a 60x40ft site for those who had given more than an acre. The assurance, however, was not incorporated into the framework agreement, he said.
“This issue has been dragged for years, with repeated rounds of litigation. The Supreme Court has now said that the State Government, in its wisdom, can take a decision after considering the pros and cons, either through the Empowerment Committee or the cabinet,” Dr Parameshwara said.
He said 574 sites are already available, while NICE will have to develop another 879 sites at locations, including Varahasandra, Madavara, Srikantapura, and Gangondanahalli.
The sites are to be provided on land acquired by the government and subsequently handed over to NICE, he said. NICE had expressed difficulties in allotting sites at certain intersections, Dr Parameshwara added.
He said some farmers had accepted compensation while others had not. The compensation was around Rs 7 lakh per acre at the time of acquisition, whereas the value of the same land would be around Rs 70 crore today, he claimed.
VTU to fund Rs 249cr UVCE upgrade on the lines of IIT
In another major decision, the cabinet approved Rs 249 crore for upgrading the University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) on the lines of IIT. The funds will be used to strengthen the institution’s infrastructure and academic facilities. The cabinet decided to utilise a portion of the corpus funds recovered by Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) from the Income Tax Department after a 14-year legal battle.
VTU has recovered more than Rs 700 crore in frozen corpus funds, and a portion of the amount will be utilised for the UVCE development project.
Cabinet discusses prosecution sanction issues
The Karnataka cabinet is also learnt to have discussed the State Government’s opinion to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on the CBI’s request for sanction to prosecute Union Minister for Steel and Heavy Industries HD Kumaraswamy.
Sources said the matter came up along with the CBI’s request for sanction to prosecute former minister B Nagendra. The Governor had sought the government’s opinion on the matter. The Cabinet also discussed alleged irregularities in KPSC’s recruitment of veterinary doctors, with the government considering a detailed response to the BJP’s allegations, sources said.