Farmers’ rehabilitation to begin soon: Yeida

The process was set in motion in 2022, when the government identified these villages for the project and issued a preliminary notification for a social impact assessment (SIA) in September 2023

GREATER NOIDA: The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) on Friday said the process to acquire 200 hectares for the rehabilitation of farmers displaced by the second phase of land acquisition (1,365 hectares) for the upcoming Noida international airport in Jewar will begin shortly.

The additional district magistrate (land revenue), Gautam Budh Nagar, has submitted a formal request to the additional chief secretary of the state’s civil aviation department for issuing a notification for this purpose. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

The additional district magistrate (land revenue), Gautam Budh Nagar, has submitted a formal request to the additional chief secretary of the state’s civil aviation department for issuing a notification for this purpose, said officials aware of the matter on Friday.

The request seeks notification approval under Section 11 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement Act, 2013. This approval will enable the acquisition of land from villages of Jewar Bangar, Sadullapur (also known as Modelpur), Falaida Bangar, Tirathli, Dhanpura, Karauli Bangar, and Mehandipur Bangar.

The process was set in motion in 2022, when the government identified these villages for the project and issued a preliminary notification for a social impact assessment (SIA) in September 2023. Gautam Buddha University in Greater Noida was appointed as the agency responsible for conducting the assessment.

The university completed the SIA report in May 2024, which was subsequently reviewed by a multi government expert panel. The findings were then presented to the state government in July 2024. After consideration, the government formally approved the report on October 16, 2024, allowing the acquisition plan to proceed.

“According to the proposal, land acquisition will involve land parcels from seven villages -- 3.886 hectares in Sadullapur (Modelpur), 48.05 hectares in Karauli Bangar, and smaller parcels in the other villages.

“The civil aviation department, as the project’s Requiring Body, has been asked to release the necessary funds to fulfil the acquisition under Rule 18 of the state’s 2016 Land Acquisition Rules. These funds will be distributed soon,” said Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer of the Yeida.

Yeida proposed a plan in June 2023 for acquiring 189.7549 hectares. After identifying discrepancies in the proposal, a revised acquisition plan covering 200.4876 hectares was submitted on October 22, 2024. This revised proposal now awaits a final approval.

“Once approved, we will take the project to the next stage,” said Bachchu Singh, additional district magistrate (land acquisition), Gautam Budh Nagar.