Centre uneasy over NOIDA land order

The UPA government is concerned over problems arising out of the Allahabad high court order, asking to hold land acquisition in Greater NOIDA. The court has ordered that the land which has been turned by developers into a realty gold mine should be returned to the farmers.

This has thrown many middle-class buyers from Delhi into a tizzy as they had invested in new homes. The builders are making polite noises about returning the money, and the banks have refused to offer loans.

A senior source in the government said the issue had come up for discussion at a meeting of a group of ministers, and that it was concerned as much for the Delhi home buyers as it was about the farmers who have been short-changed.

Of course, the party and the government take satisfaction from the discomfiture of the Mayawati government in Lucknow, as they support Rahul Gandhi who has been scoring brownie points against the main rival in the state. “The state government is responsible for the whole mess,” said a Congress leader.The government feels the farmers are being short-changed because the price paid for the land at the time of acquiring it for a ‘public purpose’ has been resold by developers many times higher. The Centre has taken up the problem with rural development minister Jairam Ramesh, who is preparing to bring in a new land acquisition bill in the monsoon session.