Date:31/01/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/31/stories/2005013115090300.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

BDA not to increase compensation for acquired land

By Divya Ramamurthi

BANGALORE, JAN. 30. The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) will not increase the compensation money given to property owners whose land it has acquired for the formation of Arkavathi Layout, unless directed by the court or the Government, says its Commissioner, M.N. Vidyashankar.

He says the BDA has paid landowners one of the highest compensation.

`We've paid more'

"We have paid more than any other government agency would have paid for the land," he says.

The compensation was fixed by the Government on the date of preliminary notification of the layout in February 2003.

The guidance value for compensation was fixed on the basis of the market value in the area.

Some residents and farmers, however, are unhappy with the compensation amount and several of them have gone to court over it.

A resident of Amruthalli here, whose land was acquired by the BDA, says the compensation she received is not sufficient to relocate.

"The formation of the layout has increased the real estate value of the entire area. I find that I cannot afford most places," she says.

However, officials of the BDA say that people should be more realistic in their expectation of compensation.

"They cannot demand all they want. After all, there is a basis for deriving the compensation money. We have stuck to those guidelines," the officials say.