PANVEL: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, along with deputy chief ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, on Sunday launched a host of infrastructure projects under the Navi Mumbai International Airport Area (NAINA). He also distributed property documents to eligible landholders and inaugurated airport-connectivity projects worth ₹ 953 crore, including three bridges and the Uran bypass, with an eye on accelerating development amid long-standing land-allotment disputes.
“When we reviewed why work had stalled despite tenders being floated, we found that farmers had lost faith in CIDCO. The Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) could contribute one percentage point to the regional gross domestic product, he noted, and projected signal-free connectivity between Worli and the airport within six to eight months. During his speech at the inauguration programme near Shirdhon in Panvel, Fadnavis acknowledged that allotment errors had eroded farmers’ trust in CIDCO.
The proposed NAINA city could generate 1.5 million jobs, including 500,000 high-paying positions, and local residents should get the first right to such opportunities, Fadnavis said. Some landholders who were promised 40% developed land in return for their land did not know where their plots were, while overlapping allotments and ownership discrepancies added to uncertainty. They were promised 40% developed land but did not know where their plots were.
In some cases, plots overlapped with those allotted to others,” Fadnavis said. He said the CIDCO had been given special powers to correct errors in approved town planning schemes, including overlapping plots, incorrect plot numbers and ownership discrepancies. He described its booklet explaining plot allotments, floor space index (FSI), existing houses and adjustments for unviable plots as the “Gita of project-affected people”. Deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde said farmers must receive appropriate benefits and facilities in return for land taken for development. He said betterment charges had been reduced to zero and a proposal to grant freehold ownership rights was in its final stages.
“Our government does not believe in forcing any project through. He also referred to the decision to regularise need-based village constructions. Deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar said essential infrastructure must precede urbanisation, referring to 36-metre- and 45-metre-wide roads planned under Town Planning Scheme 11 in Nandgaon.
After taking people’s land, they must receive the appropriate benefits and facilities,” Shinde said.
