Thaindian News

Greater Noida, July 23 (IANS) Farmers in Greater Noida Saturday staged a sit-in at the Shahberi village here to protest the Uttar Pradesh government’s move to acquire their lands anew under the new land acquisition policy, and vowed to oppose the move.

In a resolution passed at the sit-in, the farmers also decided to move a petition in the Allahabad High Court seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe against the officials responsible for earlier land acquisition.

Meanwhile, those who bought the flats that came up on lands which the Supreme Court restored to farmers also took out a march in Noida, demanding that the government ensure that their investment is safe and they get the homes at the prices agreed earlier.

The Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) announced Saturday that the land of Shahberi village would be acquired under the newly-introduced land acquisition policy.

“Complying with the high court orders, the land acquired earlier, after scrapping section 5 of the act, would be handed over to the farmers after the farmers complete legal formalities and refund the compensation accepted by them,” said GNIDA CEO Rama Raman.

“After the formalities are completed, the land would be notified under section 4 of the act and the objections would be invited from the farmers. After resolving objections, the land would be finally acquired and would be dispensed accordingly under the new policy,” he added.

Opposing the government’s move, farmers organisations termed it a “conspiracy hatched by the state under the obligation committed earlier to the builders”, and reiterated their stand to oppose and expose the government to oblige the private builders.

“We would file a petition before the Allahabad High Court seeking CBI investigation in the role of senior Greater Noida officials who had arbitrarily grabbed farmers’ lands and handed over to the private builders by scrapping section 5 of the Land Acquisition Act by changing land use overnight at Lucknow,” said Satya Pal Chaudhary, on whose writ the land acquisition was quashed by the Allahabad High Court.

On the other hand, the buyers of the flats took out a protest march in Noida from sector 14A to sector-18 and submitted a memorandum of their demands to NOIDA chairman Balwinder Singh.