Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train will soon begin construction. A considerable land is required for this project. However, the route for this corridor requires land that is owned by citizens. Hence, to acquire the land, the central government has paid hefty sums to some of the villagers in Surat for their land. An article recently published by the mid-day reveals the nitty-gritty details about the people who became millionaires overnight. Here are some of the details.
Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: Surat Residents Get Hefty Compensation For Land
Based on what the mid-day article says, it seems that compensations were given primarily to some of the residents of Antroli, Niyol, as well as Mohni. The highest amount was paid to Bhavesh Barad. A part of the land he owned in Niyol was required for the station to be built.
He received a whopping ₹96 crores for this contribution. The exact measurement of land that Barad gave up is not mentioned in the article. Another beneficiary of this move is Satishchandra Desai of Antroli. He received ₹70 crores in exchange for 14 bighas or around 9 acres of land.
Satishchandra Desai is a non-residential Indian who lives in Florida. He owns a chain of coffee shops and motels there. Desai became an NRI 30 years ago. Another Antroli resident Indravadan Vyas received ₹34 crores for about 4 acres of land. Vyas is a priest and earns money by doing rituals in the village.
Also Read: Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin Rides Japan’s Osaka-Tokyo Bullet Train; ‘Bats’ For Same Service In India!
Some Residents May Not Have Been Fairly Compensated
Vijay Parekh of Mohni stated that even though only half of his land was required, he ended up losing all of it. Even though the exact measurement is not mentioned here, he said that he has only received ₹60 lakhs in compensation so far and has no clarity about the total sum that he is to receive.
Another case is that of Kantilal and Hasuben Patel who ended up losing their bungalow and received ₹55 lakhs in return. They constructed a new one which cost them ₹85 lakhs.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train, once completed, is said to reduce the travel time between the two financial hubs to around 2.5 hours.
Do you think that lands that have been acquired for other governmental projects received similarly hefty sums? Or were they just poorly compensated? Why do you think these specific people were so well-compensated? Let us know in the comments below!
Cover Image Credits: Canva Images (Representational)