Rs60,000cr plan stuck on green light

Rs60,000cr plan stuck on green light

Bidadi township does not have an environment clearance from the Centre as yet

Rohith BR. Bangalore

The Bidadi Township is being project touted as a mega infrastructure project worth around Rs60,000 crore. But when it comes to getting the basics right, the state is yet to do its worth.
Sample the travesty: A project covering over 9,000 acres of land acquisition does not have a proper environment clearance approval from the Union government.
"As per the 2006 amendment to the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, an environmental clearance is a must for any township project (and is a requisite for a project exceeding Rs50 crore) at the initial stage. However, as far as the Bidadi Township project is concerned, the government is yet to act in this regard," said Naveen KS, an environmentalist.
He said that since the area identified for Bidadi is originally a valley and ideal for agriculture with many water bodies, the environment assessment is a must before taking up land acquisition.
The issue was raised as early as in 2007, when DLF was given the project.
However, the Bangalore Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (BMRDA) had then said that the land has not been notified for acquisition and hence obtaining environmental clearance at that stage did not arise. Experts say land notified or not for acquisition is not an excuse for not getting environment clearance for a project.
Deputy metropolitan commissioner of BMRDA M Doddappa said that the responsibility rests with the developer and it will not be taken up before the land acquisition.
"Once the developer is finalised the process will be kicked off," he said. Experts say that since the clearance will take a minimum of 10-12 months, there is an urgent need to act fast as earlier the township is up the sooner Bangalore will have the chance to decongest. The BMRDA is also yet to assess the precise requirement of water and power for the proposed township. "The estimates are figures pertaining to the year 2007. There is a need to redo the study. Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board and Bangalore Electricity Supply Company also need to check whether they are in a position to meet the needs of the projected population of several lakhs in the proposed township," said a senior official with the BMRDA.