New land acquisition policy to speed up Metro expansion in Gurugram

The Haryana Government has approved the land acquisition policy for Gurugram Metro which will now allow the Gurugram Metro Rail Limited (GMRL) to acquire private land for construction of tracks and metro stations.

The new policy approved by CM Nayab Singh Saini aims to speed up Metro expansion in old Gurugram which is facing land acquisition hurdles. The policy’s implementation will be overseen by a land acquisition committee composed of 11 officials under the chairmanship of Gurugram deputy commissioner. According to officials, the committee will carry out direct negotiations with the land owners for purchase of land, and the cost of acquisition will be borne by GMRL. According to the proposed policy, the cost of the land purchase and the associated costs will be borne by GMRL.

The key element of the new policy is that the direct purchase method will be inclusive of all compensation and rehabilitation benefits, as specified in Second and Third Schedule of Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (RFCTLARR Act 2013) for titleholders. The price of land shall be fixed based through negotiations and mutual consent; hence no separate rehabilitation and resettlement benefits shall be paid to the land owners, as per the policy. The rehabilitation and resettlement of non-titleholders will be considered as per the project settlement plan, the policy states.

The new policy comprises eight steps for the land purchase. The process starts with the inspection of the site. This inspection will be conducted by the GMRL’s chief project manager. After this, the land information will be presented to the land acquisition committee. A public notice will be issued before the land purchase. After the purchase, the land will be transferred to GMRL.

To be sure, two houses in Sector 4, one in Sector 9, and several houses and shops in Basai village need to be acquired for Metro construction. Nearly 100 rooms near the Marble Market also need to be demolished for the Metro depot.

According to GMRL officials, the policy takes into account the fact that a major part of the Metro alignment passes through government land but there are some private properties that need to be acquired.