The proposed Pandharpur pilgrimage development corridor project faced fresh opposition at the local level, with all members of the Pandharpur Municipal Council opposing the land acquisition proposal and deciding to defer it.
Municipal council president Pranita Bhalke subsequently announced that the proposal had been deferred with the consensus of the ruling and opposition members. Following the discussion, all councillors supported keeping the proposal pending.
The project involves acquisition of land and properties in parts of Pandharpur. “Neither have we received any notices nor any communication from the state government regarding land acquisition for the Pandharpur Corridor Project. Deshmukh has been appointed the land acquisition officer-cum-project officer.
The Maharashtra government approved a ₹ 3,993-crore development plan for the corridor in June. The Solapur district administration is likely to begin the official land acquisition process for the proposed corridor within 15 days, deputy collector Santoshkumar Deshmukh said on Monday after showing a presentation of the project on Monday. Deshmukh said a ₹ 201-crore rehabilitation policy has been approved for affected residential and commercial property owners and tenants.
We have therefore organised this protest to demonstrate the strength of our opposition,” he said.
The administration has said efforts will be made to ensure that affected residents, shopkeepers and tenants are rehabilitated. Abhay Singh Ichganokar-Kulkarni, head of the Pandharpur Tirth Kshetra Bachao Samiti, said the group had not received any notices or communication from the state government regarding the proposed land acquisition. The guardian minister said that only a few people are opposing the project. “No affected person will be forcibly removed, kept in the dark about the process or subjected to sudden action by the government machinery,” Deshmukh said.
The Tirth Kshetra Bachao Samiti organised a protest march outside the Pandharpur Municipal Council on Wednesday, opposing the proposal seeking approval for land acquisition for the corridor project.
