Yeida to increase land rates to appease protesting farmers

Yeida will increase land purchase rates for farmers to ₹4,300/sqm amid protests, aligning with rates for Noida Airport land acquisitions.

Caving to farmers’ protests, the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) will now buy agricultural land for industrial and urbanisation projects at ₹4,300/sqm instead of ₹3,400/sqm, officials said on Tuesday. Yeida is likely to approve a proposal to hike the rate in its March 28 board meeting.

₹4,300/sqm is the same rate offered to farmers whose land is being acquired for the third and fourth phases of the Noida Airport project. (PTI)

In December 2024 the state government hiked the rate from ₹3,400/sqm to ₹4,300/sqm for land acquired for Noida Airport project’s phases 3 and 4. Agricultural land not in this category remained at ₹3,400/sqm, so these farmers started protests demanding the same rate. The ₹3,400/sqm rate was itself a hike from ₹2,650/sqm, implemented in October 2022 following protests from farmers’ groups.

“We have prepared a proposal to offer ₹4,300 per square metre to farmers whose land is to be procured for our industrial and other urbanisation projects. This is to make sure that the farmers whose land is earmarked for developmental projects outside the airport project site get the same price offered to farmers whose land is acquired for the airport. We will put this proposal in the March 28 board meeting and get approval so that the farmers get a fair price for their land,” said Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer of Yeida.

“We are happy that Yeida will increase the land rates to benefit farmers. If Yeida will not increase the land rates the farmers will not give their land for developmental projects,” said Mukesh Bhati, a farmer from Mirzapur village.

The Noida Airport is being built in phases. In the first phase, the state government bought 1,334 hectares agricultural land at ₹2,650/sqm in Jewar and handed it over to the Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a 100% subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, which is building the airport. The first phase has a completion deadline of April 2025. In phase two, the state acquired 1,185 hectares at ₹3,100/sqm for setting up the third runway and commercial MRO centre (maintenance, repair and overhaul work of aircraft).

The government wants to acquire 4,500 hectares of agricultural land for the airport and has decided to immediately acquire at least 60,000 hectares of agricultural land for planned future development along the 165km Yamuna Expressway between Greater Noida and Agra, said officials.

Yeida has planned mega industrial and urbanisation projects including an aerocity, logistics park, data centre, education hub, “American City”, electronic products’ manufacturing cluster, “Japanese City”, and new urban areas in the catchment area of the Noida Airport, said officials.