MSRDC clears misconception of farmers via social media

The state government run Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has launched a social media campaign on Facebook and YouTube. This is to counter negative perception for the proposed 701-km long Mumbai-Nagpur Super Expressway among farmers who are opposing acquisition of their agricultural land in lieu of construction of the Expressway.

The corporation has uploaded animated documentaries on YouTube explaining the project to the farmers. Along with it, a dedicated blog and a website also have been created to give regular updates on the project.

Farmers along with opposition parties including ally Shiv Sena have been opposing acquisition of 20,000 hectares of land for the Expressway, a dream project of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The plan is to connect the financial capital with the state's winter capital, Nagpur.

Kiran Kurundkar, joint managing director, MSRDC said, "We are using social media as a tool to communicate with the farmers. This will filter the scope of any miscreant spreading misinformation."

"Apart from using Facebook and YouTube, we are also using blogs and a dedicated website to communicate with the masses," added Kurundkar.

Between Bhiwandi and Nagpur 84 per cent of the required land for the expressway construction is agricultural, 13 per cent is uncultivated land and the remaining 1.92 per cent is forest land.

Meanwhile, on Monday a group of farmers met Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray at Aurangabad to register their protest against the project.

THE ISSUE

• The basic contention of the farmers is that the land acquisition should be carried out under the Land acquisition Act, 2013. Several groups of farmers have also approached the Aurangabad and Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court against the land acquisition for the project.