Govt revises relief package

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Supporters of Anna Hazare protest against the attack on Supreme Court lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan in his Supreme Court cham

To avoid a Bhatta Parsaul-like situation on land acquisition in the city, the Delhi government has decided to revise the Special Rehabilitation package for landowners of four villages in North Delhi. The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
“The Cabinet considered the proposal submitted by land and building department for revising Special Rehabilitation Package as announced after a Cabinet decision on September 18, 2008,” said chief minister Sheila Dikshit.
In the year 2008, the Cabinet had announced a relief package for the landowners, most of them in northwest district, whose land had been acquired for various developmental projects by DSIIDC and Delhi Development Authority. Aggrieved by the rates offered for acquisition of their land, the landowners agitated over the issue and knocked the doors of the government, which formed a committee of officers and representatives of farmers for resolving the issue.
“The committee proposed for a backward revision of rates to address the grievance of the landowners. The government has thereafter ordered for reduction of rates at `11.80 lakhs per annum/per acre from `53 lakhs per acre. Their land was acquired during 2005 and the entire process could not be completed during stipulated period of three years and the rates were revised in 2007 to `53 lakhs per acre,” said a senior Delhi government official.
“Hence, the committee decided to recommend backward revision of rates per acre/per annum in order to amicably settle the issue,” the official added.
The Special Rehabilitation Package was then announced with the pre-condition of withdrawal of courts cases by the landowners.
“The present revision is being effected, keeping in view, certain special circumstances, hence, this Special Rehabilitation Package should not to be treated as a precedent,” Ms Dikshit added.
After the decision of the Cabinet, compensation shall be paid as per the individual entitlements calculated on the base rate of `13.70 lakh per acre.
Few days back, thousands of farmers from several villages gathered at Barwala village to protest against the acquisition of fertile land only to create a land bank.