It's now or never

Even as the project affected persons (PAPs) are in talks with the state government — with City and Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco) serving as the facilitator — over issues surrounding the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) project, residents of the satellite city are eagerly waiting for the first flight to take off.

They opine that if the authorities don’t arrive at a conclusion at the earliest the project might never take shape.

According to authorities, NMIA PAPs will be getting more than what was offered to persons affected during development of Navi Mumbai.

While the city PAPs got 12.5% developed plots, the airport PAPs have been promised 22.5% developed plots besides other facilities such as employment to at least one family member; professional training to the kin.

Even though PAPs have been saying that the airport will and should be built, they are adamant over getting their demands fulfilled. This is delaying things.

“We will not budge; we want 35% developed land and compensation of Rs20 crore per acre before we surrender our land for the project. However, we are ready to sit down and discuss our demands with state government representatives as we too want the project to take shape as early as possible,” a PAPs’ leader said. Though the chief minister has refused to give cash compensation to PAPs, the leader hopes to arrive at an amicable solution through discussions.

“Authorities will have to arrive at a conclusion soon, and if they fail to do so, the land already acquired by Cidco for the project will be of no use as majority of it falls in coastal regulation zone, where further development won’t be possible,” a source said.

PAPs recently claimed that Cidco is ‘sympathetic’ towards their needs, and the process of acquiring land has been sped up. “Everything depends on how fast the chief minister, who also holds the urban development portfolio, takes decisions in favour of the project. Recently, Cidco announced a 26-point programme for overall development of the PAPs, which aims to encourage PAPs to give their land to Cidco for various infrastructural projects,” added the source.

As per some of the points mentioned in the programme, the corporation will develop basic amenities in gaothan areas; start various beneficial schemes for PAPs; provide professional and educational facilities to sons-of-the-soils. A provision of Rs200 crore has been made available by Cidco for the activities.

The programme also includes increasing scholarship amounts of the wards of PAPs. A detailed action plan has  been created out by the agency for proper implementation of the scheme.

Cidco managing director Sanjay Bhatia had earlier stated that he will make all concerted efforts to see that the NMIA project is completed on time and that all the issues related to it are addressed at the earliest.