Renuka Dam project: Landowners reject govt offer

In the last one year,the HPPCL,a state government undertaking entrusted with execution of the project,has made several unsuccessful attempts to acquire the land but the landowners have always turned down the offer.

This time,the HPPCL has started afresh by reminding the people of various benefits being offered to them under the Relief and Rehabilitation Plan. The package offers each landowner a house on 150 sq m area and an alternate land of 250 sq m,on which if they want to construct houses the HPPCL would pay construction cost at the rate of Rs 4,000 per sq m.

After the landowners had refused to accept the previous rates of Rs 50,000 per bigha for barren land,Rs 1.50 lakh per bigha for un-irrigated agricultural and Rs 2.50 lakh for irrigated agricultural land,the HPPCL has revised the compensation to Rs 75,000,Rs 3 lakh and Rs 5 lakh for each category of land,respectively.

The landowners,however,feel that by taking up the issue of relief measures,the HPPCL is trying to distract people from their main demand of land in lieu of the agricultural land they would part with.

They also point out that besides their land,they would also lose their rights over local forests,which would be submerged due to the project.

“The rehabilitation package has no significance. The delay is giving ample time to middlemen and property dealers to make land purchase deals with illiterate people at throwaway prices. The latest example is registration of 13 different pieces of land through middlemen in villages around the proposed dam area,where people have been cheated and the police inquiry is on,” said Durga Das of the Renuka Bandh Sangharsh Samiti.

A spokesperson of the HPPCL said the authorities are aware of the needs of the people who would be displaced.

Pension has been offered for disabled persons,widows and senior citizens above 50 years of age and scholarships for students who want to pursue higher education and enhance their technical skills.