Mumbai: The Maharastra government will hire a public relations (PR) firm to develop a positive view of the bullet train project, which is facing protests from tribals over land acquisition and diversion of forest land.
Last month, the government had informed the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) of the disturbances on a 90-km alignment passing through the State, where the geo-technical and land survey have been halted following the protests. The PMO had directed the Maharashtra and Gujarat governments to complete land acquisition by December. The decision to hire the agency has been taken in line with the directives of the PMO, officials said.
The agency will be spreading awareness, and at the same time, explaining the importance of the project to the tribals in Thane and Palghar districts. “The firm will be deployed to promote the project, and explain to the tribals that we are not interested in snatching land and forest from them,” a senior official said.
The firm’s main task would be to address issues related to land acquisition in 12 districts. Diversion of 77 hectares of forest land will also be addressed. “The firm will cover areas around the 90-km alignment, where work has been halted,” an official said.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was informed that the overall progress of land acquisition was at 51% for Maharashtra and 58% for Gujarat.
Activists have warned that the loss of green cover could aggravate the issue, especially in Palghar district where geotechnical investigations, hydrological survey, and utility mapping have been stopped on the 90-km alignment. About 312 villages in Gujarat and Maharashtra will have to give up land, while 7,974 plots belonging to the forest department and the Railways will have to be acquired.
The bullet train, with a capacity for 750 passengers, will travel between 320 km and 350 km per hour, and is expected to reduce travel time between Ahmedabad and Mumbai to three-and-a-half hours or less from the present eight. The project is expected to be completed in seven years.
