The decision of the State government to cancel the Suvarna Karnataka Industrial Corridor Land Bank Project and return 13,788 acres of land has not brought any respite to the farmers here who are fighting a legal battle to protect their fertile land.
The Special Land Acquisition Officer of the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), Dharwad, Vijay Honkeri told The Hindu recently that the decision was not applicable to farmers of Kittur as the process of allotment had been done for around one-third of the area acquired for the establishment of the Kittur Industrial Estate near Kittur town in Bailhongal taluk.
But some farmers said that they would not give up, even if the KIADB enhanced the amount of compensation.
According to Prasanna Torgalmath, Fakeerappa Saudatti and Sadyappa Martannavar, 27 farmers are fighting a legal battle since 2011 and have filed writ petitions before the Dharwad bench of the High Court, challenging the preliminary and final notifications of the KIADB. acquiring 648 acres, 17 guntas and 4 annas to set up the Suvarna Industrial Corridor along the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway . Of 648 acres, the farmers are fighting to protect their land spread over about 210 acres along the highway. The KIADB, except in 210 acres area that is now under dispute, had already taken up development works at the remaining 438 acres .
The compensation paid was Rs. 9 lakh, Rs.10 lakh and Rs.12 lakh per acre for dry land, irrigated and lands on the highway side respectively.
The Bench quashed the 28(3) and 28(4) notifications issued by the Special Land Acquisition officer and member secretary, KIADB, Dharwad, and Deputy Commissioner and Chairman of the Land Value Determination Advisory Committee, Belagavi on August 31, 2015. Subsequently, the farmers filed a writ appeal before in September seeking quashing of both the notification issued under Section 28(1) and (2).
Mr. Martannavar and Dr. Torgalmath said that their families had developed their land with irrigation facilities of their own over three to four decades ago.
For most of them, agriculture is their main source of livelihood.
Even if the government enhanced compensation amount, there were no alternate lands available for the farmers to take up agriculture.
