DM seeks farmers’ consent to acquire land for Manjhawali bridge over Yamuna

Once the bridge becomes functional, commuters travelling from Greater Noida to Faridabad and Gurugram will be able to bypass Delhi

The Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate Manish Kumar Verma initiated talks with the farmers to obtain their consent for the land acquisition rate in the Manjhawali bridge project, construction of which is ongoing in Haryana’s Faridabad, officials said Wednesday.

Besides Faridabad and Gurugram, the bridge will also provide connectivity to Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Yamuna Expressway and Eastern Peripheral Expressway. (HT Photo)

The DM met with officials concerned as well as farmers whose land is being acquired for the project on Tuesday and sought their cooperation in making the project a reality.

“Farmers have been asked to reach a mutual agreement with regards to the land acquisition rate while directions have been issued to expedite the project work,” said Verma.

Once the bridge becomes functional, commuters travelling from Greater Noida to Faridabad and Gurugram will not have to travel via Delhi. The bridge will also provide connectivity to Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Yamuna Expressway and Eastern Peripheral Expressway.

Farmers also conveyed their concerns to the DM, said officials. The upcoming Manjhawali bridge, over river Yamuna, connects Gautam Budh Nagar with Faridabad, and the construction commenced in January this year, said officials.

“The process of land acquisition in ongoing. On Tuesday, DM visited the site to meet with farmers regarding getting their consent for the land acquisition rate. They have been asked to cooperate in the process,” said Bachoo Singh, additional district magistrate, Gautam Budh Nagar .

“A meeting will be organised with farmers to discuss these issues further,” he said.

Officials said the bridge has already been constructed and the work is ongoing on the approach road on the Faridabad side, which is being undertaken by the Haryana government. However, construction work on the Gautam Budh Nagar is yet to start.

“Work on the approach road, measuring around 1.8km, which falls under the Uttar pradesh government is yet to be taken up and it has to be done by the public works department,” said ADM Singh

Notably, June 2024 was set as the deadline for making the Manjhawali bridge project operational. “Due to the ongoing land issues, the deadline has been extended,” said an official, asking not to be named.

Around 16 families (all farmers) in Manjhawali will have to give up their land for the project, said district administration officials.