Varthur farmers want govt to acquire land
BENGALURU: Here is a farmer who is offering his land to the government to be acquired. B Srinivasan (72), who has farmland around Varthur Lake, is one of many farmers demanding that the government officially acquire their properties and give compensation.
They say their land is no longer fit for cultivation, due to a rise in water level after a tank bund was created on Varthur Lake. Srinivasan told TNIE, “The tank bund construction is done in an unscientific manner. During the monsoon, rainwater flowing into the lake is obstructed by the tank bund. As a result, land belonging to me and my family gets submerged. This has made the land unfit for agriculture, and is fit for acquisition.”
He said his father had purchased 1.15 acres of land in Belegere village, Varthur hobli, on April 25, 1961. The property was divided among the family members after his father’s death. The survey numbers are 14/1, 14/2A, 14/2B and 308 in Amani Bellandur Khane. In the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) Comprehensive Development Plan, 2004, the survey numbers were included in the yellow zone. In 2015, after the Supreme Court order, it became part of the buffer zone.
Srinivasan has submitted a memorandum to the state government, stating that since the designated land use is deemed to have lapsed under Section 69(2) of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, and the act of the government amounts to passive acquisition, it must be acquired by the government and due compensation given.
He is not the only property owner who has approached the government. There are 20 other farmers suffering the same plight, on around 20 acres of land. BBMP lake engineer Ravi Vijaykumar said water gushes on to their land because it is at a lower level than the lake, and because of insufficient drain capacity. The decision on acquiring the land and giving compensation rests with the government. So far, no order has been issued for land acquisition in such cases, and no compensation given.
A former NGT-constituted committee member explained that under the buffer zone, the government need not acquire land, but should not deprive farmers from undertaking cultivation. As per apex court orders, no development or construction activities should be permitted. The buffer zone is to be maintained by the BBMP.