Observing that that State government had coerced 120 farmers to part with their lands for construction of Annapurna reservoir of Kaleswaram Lift Irrigation Scheme, Telangana High Court on Wednesday directed the government to re-determine the compensation for the land oustees.
The farmers are also eligible for lumpsum amounts for Rehabilitation and Resettlement, a bench of Justices M.S. Ramachandra Rao and K. Lakshman said in the judgement. The exercise of re-determination of compensation and lumpsum amounts for R&R and payments should be completed within three months. Each of the petitioner should be paid a cost of ₹ 2,000 by the government.
The HC made it clear that amounts already paid to the land oustees should not be recovered. It must be adjusted against the sums of compensation and lumpsum for R&R which are to be re-fixed. Annapurna reservoir (earlier known as Ananthagirisagar reservoir) of 3.5 tmcft capacity was part of the State government’s prestigious KLIS. Water was released into it on March 11.
Farmers of bordering Sircilla-Rajanna and Siddipet districts, whose lands were acquired for the reservoir, moved the HC through four writ petitions since 2017 demanding lawful compensation under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act-2013.
The government started procuring 890 acres of land for construction of the reservoir by issuing GO MS 123 in 2015. The order said the price at which lands are to be procured should be consensual and to be voluntarily agreed by the farmers and the government. The 120 land oustees maintained that authorities forced them to part with the lands and sign the papers of compensation which was far less than the market price of their lands.
Their counsel B. Rachna Reddy claimed that while some farmers were paid ₹13 lakh per acre in Lingareddipally village, her clients were forced to accept ₹6.5 lakh per acre. During hearing of the writ petitions, Advocate General B.S. Prasad on May 14 filed a memo requesting the bench to post the matters for final hearing after the end of epidemic. Rejecting AG’s request, the bench said it was not clear when the pandemic would end and the AG cannot say the court cannot hear the pleas till the pandemic is brought under control.
