All posts tagged: land acquisition

Kerala govt scraps ‘Silverline’ high-speed rail project launched by LDF. Here’s why

Kerala govt scraps ‘Silverline’ high-speed rail project launched by LDF. Here’s why

Published by Parlour News

Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan announced on Wednesday that the proposed “Silverline” semi-high speed rail project would now be scrapped. The 530-km project was expected to reduce the distance between Thiruvananthapuram and Kasaragod- two districts at opposite ends of the state- to four hours. This was a collaboration between the former government under the LDF administration and the Ministry of Railways, planned by K-Rail. VD Satheesan’s government scraps former LDF administration’s semi-high speed rail project called “Silverline” (PTI) “The Cabinet has decided to scrap the Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod semi-high speed rail corridor project called Silverline,” Satheesan said at the commencement of a press conference. The CM also added that notifications regarding land acquisition for the project will be revoked, as reported by PTI. Why the ambitious project was withdrawn The Congress-led Kerala government stated that the project was withdrawn due to its abandonment by the previous administration and issues pertaining to transactions regarding lands notified for acquisition, a move affecting the common man. The central government’s lack of approval for the project added to the …

Shivakumar Seeks Centre’s Intervention Amid Tensions With Andhra Over Alamatti Dam Height Expansion | India News

Shivakumar Seeks Centre’s Intervention Amid Tensions With Andhra Over Alamatti Dam Height Expansion | India News

Published by Webster

Last Updated:March 04, 2026, 13:05 IST Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar urged the Union Government to address Andhra Pradesh’s objections to raising Alamatti dam height. Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar Expressing profound disappointment over neighbouring Andhra Pradesh’s objections to increasing the height of the Alamatti dam to 524 meters, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Tuesday called upon the Union Government to intervene and protect the state’s riparian rights. Speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha, the Deputy Chief Minister, who also holds the Irrigation portfolio, criticised the recent move by Andhra Pradesh to petition the Centre against land acquisition for the project. Shivakumar emphasised that Karnataka is acting within the framework of the 2010 Tribunal order, which allowed the state to increase its water usage from 177 TMC to 330 TMC, yet the project remains stalled due to the lack of a formal Gazette notification. The escalating dispute follows a September 2025 Cabinet decision by the Karnataka government to acquire 1.33 lakh acres of land, a massive undertaking supported by a planned investment of …

Foreign universities get a springboard to execute their India ambition

Foreign universities get a springboard to execute their India ambition

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The government will support states in creating these university townships, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in her budget speech on Sunday, adding that these academic zones will host multiple universities, colleges, research institutions, skill centres and residential complexes. The plan could benefit foreign universities seeking a low-risk opportunity to enter the Indian market, according to Suchindra Kumar, partner and leader of education at consulting firm PwC India. “Some foreign universities are wary of the heavy capital expenditures. These townships will provide the infrastructure for the universities to set up on a ‘plug and play’ model like Gift City, attracting more of them to enter the Indian market.” India’s plan marks an effort to stem the exodus of Indian students eyeing foreign education. The number of Indians studying abroad has more than doubled from 6.85 lakh in 2016 to over 18 lakh by 2025, making it the largest source of international students, according to the Economic Survey for 2026-27. Indian learners focus on countries such as Canada, the USA, the UK, and Australia because of their …

CBI land attachment won’t impact IT City project: LDA officials

CBI land attachment won’t impact IT City project: LDA officials

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The Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) has charted its response to land parcels attached by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) within its IT City housing scheme, stating it will follow legal provisions while keeping the project on schedule. Representational image (Sourced) Senior LDA officials said nearly five hectares of land in Parehta village, part of the IT City project area along Sultanpur Road, has been attached by the CBI in connection with an ongoing probe. This development comes as the authority advances land acquisition and preparatory work for the large-scale scheme spanning around 3,490 acres. Officials said if the matter remains unresolved by the time acquisition proceeds, the authority will deposit the award money under the land acquisition process with the district magistrate as per prescribed procedures. Once this formal step is completed and acquisition advances, LDA will submit a request to the CBI seeking release of these attached plots. “We are still awaiting clarification from the CBI. Once the agency shares details of any pending or ongoing investigation related to specific khasra numbers or …

₹936 crore disbursed for Kangra airport expansion so far: Officials

₹936 crore disbursed for Kangra airport expansion so far: Officials

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As the land acquisition process for the expansion of Kangra airport in Himachal Pradesh is underway, ₹936 crore has been disbursed till January 12, officials aware of the matter said. The proposed expansion is expected to displace hundreds of families. According to estimates, at least 1,500 households across 14 villages would be affected. (File) Earlier, the state government had disbursed up to ₹460 crore, with officials stating that the target was to release additional ₹800 crore by January 18. The state government is in the process of expanding the airport and is acquiring around 150 hectares of land for the project. The total cost of land acquisition has been pegged at approximately ₹3,500 crore. The proposed expansion is expected to displace hundreds of families. According to estimates, at least 1,500 households across 14 villages would be affected. The expansion would also entail the displacement of almost the entire Gaggal township, located about 2 km from the airport, as noted in the Himachal government’s social impact assessment (SIA) report released in May 2023. Kangra district tourism …

17 years on, Karnataka HC quashes land acquisition originally obtained for Bengaluru-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project | Legal News

17 years on, Karnataka HC quashes land acquisition originally obtained for Bengaluru-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project | Legal News

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The Karnataka High Court recently quashed the acquisition of a one-acre land parcel in Bengaluru South’s Thalaghattapura, originally acquired 17 years ago for the Bengaluru-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project (BMICP). The order was passed by a single-judge bench of Justice KS Hemalekha on December 5 and made public Wednesday. In this case, the owner, one Rathna Reddy, had approached the court against the acquisition, claiming to be the owner who was still in possession of the property. The petitioner claimed that despite 17 years passing since the final acquisition notification in 2008, the state had neither awarded compensation nor taken possession; moreover, there was a June 2025 order from the Planning Office of the BMICP which stated that no ramp/link interchange, etc, was planned on that particular survey number property. The petitioner also pointed to proceedings before the Supreme Court, where the Karnataka government had filed an affidavit stating that 554 acres of excess land had been handed over, with no further land to be delivered. Before the bench, Reddy’s counsel argued that the acquisition proceedings …

Kerala HC quashes key stages in Sabarimala greenfield airport land acquisition

Kerala HC quashes key stages in Sabarimala greenfield airport land acquisition

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Kochi, The Kerala High Court has set aside crucial stages of the land acquisition process for the proposed Sabarimala greenfield airport, holding that the state failed to properly assess the minimum land actually required for the project. Kerala HC quashes key stages in Sabarimala greenfield airport land acquisition On December 30, 2022, the state government issued an order granting sanction for the acquisition of 2,570 acres of land, comprising the Cheruvally Estate and an additional 307 acres located outside it. Justice C Jayachandran, delivering the judgment on a writ petition filed by Ayana Charitable Trust and its managing trustee Dr Siny Punnoose, ruled the decision-making process under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, was legally flawed. The court, in its December 19 order, directed the state to restart the process by conducting a fresh social impact assessment limited to examining the minimum land requirement, followed by a fresh appraisal by the expert group and reconsideration by the government. The petitioners had challenged several government actions, including …

Farmer allegedly consumes poison during land acquisition protest in Channarayapatna

Farmer allegedly consumes poison during land acquisition protest in Channarayapatna

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A 55-year-old farmer, facing the loss of three acres of land to an industrial project at Channarayapatna in Devanahalli, allegedly consumed poison on Thursday during a protest against land acquisition. The farmer, identified as Venkatesh, was undergoing treatment at Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru. The protest, led by a group of farmers whose lands have been notified for acquisition under the third phase of an industrial project by the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB), has been ongoing for over 1,000 days. The KIADB has notified 1,777 acres for acquisition. Since the notification was issued, farmers have been staging an indefinite sit-in, opposing the project. During the last Assembly elections, the protestors threatened to boycott the polls, prompting the government to promise to cancel the project, but it remained unfulfilled. On Thursday morning, when the farmers left the protest site intending to meet the district in-charge Minister K.H. Muniyappa at his residence in Sanjay Nagar, police intercepted and stopped two buses transporting over 100 farmers. Farmer leader Anjaneya Reddy, speaking to The Hindu, said that upon …

Kollam Greenfield Highway Hits Speed Breaker As Kerala Forest Department Rejects NHAI Proposal

Kollam Greenfield Highway Hits Speed Breaker As Kerala Forest Department Rejects NHAI Proposal

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Last Updated:February 07, 2025, 13:28 IST The Kerala Forest Department rejected the proposal of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the diversion of forest land in two villages — Ayiranalloor and Edamon. Connecting Kollam in Kerala to Madurai in Tamil Nadu via Thirumangalam was proposed to be developed as a four-lane highway. (Representational Image: Shutterstock) The alignment of the Kollam greenfield highway is placed under review for the Kadambattukonam-Edamon section after the Kerala Forest Department rejected the proposal of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the diversion of forest land in two villages — Ayiranalloor and Edamon, Lok Sabha was informed. In a written reply, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said Detailed Project Report (DPR) preparation for Kadambattukonam – Edamon section of NH-744 was awarded. “As part of DPR, land acquisition is undertaken in accordance with National Highways Act 1956 and compensation is determined as per NH Act 1956 and provisions of Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, as made applicable,” Gadkari said. The …

“If Needed, Sit On Dharna…” Ashwini Vaishnaw To Shashi Tharoor In Lok Sabha

“If Needed, Sit On Dharna…” Ashwini Vaishnaw To Shashi Tharoor In Lok Sabha

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The railway minister said the government wants to ensure big cities and junctions are decongested. New Delhi: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday suggested in the Lok Sabha that, if required, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor can sit on a ‘dharna’ (protest) for acquiring land for a railway project in Kerala. Mr Vaishnaw’s comments came while replying to a question on the Nemom railway terminal project in Thiruvananthapuram, which is Mr Tharoor’s constituency. During Question Hour, the Congress leader mentioned the delay and insufficient funds for the project, which can help decongest the railway line to Thiruvananthapuram Central. In response, Mr Vaishnaw said the government’s focus is to make sure the big cities and junctions are decongested, new terminals are built and that a lot of emphasis is given on designing them so that the demands and requirements of next 50 years are met. “The question in Kerala is not of funds. We have already deposited Rs 2,150 crore for acquiring land… I would request Shashi Tharoor ji, a very influential MP whom entire Kerala listens to, …