The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) may have to shell out ₹100 crore for the NICE land acquired for the ongoing Phase II of Namma Metro. Compensation for the land has been a bone of contention with construction work getting delayed for years.
The BMRCL requires approximately 19,500 sq.m. of NICE land, of which compensation coming to nearly ₹13 crore has been made for 2,500 sq.m. It has now come out with a ₹100 crore compensation package for the remaining 17,053 sq.m. of land that comes up to four acres.
However, the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) — the agency that has been acquiring land for the BMRCL for Namma Metro projects — will take the final decision on paying the compensation.
According to sources, there are three ‘categories’ of properties in the possession of NICE that the BMRCL needs. The first ‘category’ was acquired by the KIADB for the expressway project and sale deed executed in the name of NICE; the second comprises properties that were notified for the expressway project but compensation has not been awarded to property-owners; and the third is land leased by the government to NICE.
“There are instances of the original property owners who had parted with land for the expressway project not receiving compensation. The KIADB will study the property documents and take a decision. As per norms, we have sent the compensation package to the KIADB for further action,” said a source in the BMRCL.
The metro rail corporation acquired the land for various purposes such as the construction of a depot on Kanakapura Road, a station at Electronics City on Hosur Road, and a viaduct on Mysuru Road and Tumakuru Road. “We have acquired all the land required for the metro project. Construction work is progressing well. Now, the KIADB will decide on paying the compensation to the rightful property owners,” said BMRCL managing director Anjum Parwez.
In the past, the BMRCL had faced several hurdles while executing the project on NICE land. In June 2020, it had approached the police seeking their help to carry out work near Electronics City which is part of R.V. Road — Bommasandra elevated metro line.
Not getting land on Tumakuru Road to build Nagasandra to Madvara line also resulted in inordinate delays in executing the project. In 2019, the issue of the delay in getting NICE land for the metro project had also reached the government level.
