The Times of India          18.10.2010

Mullanpur project could be delayed

  MOHALI: For those whose dream of owning a house in the Aerocity was shattered by the lottery system of draw of lots, the wait for another such housing project may prove longer with Greater Mohali Area Development Authority's (GMADA) next big project, Mullanpur Urban Estate, being mired in litigation.

The eagerly anticipated project, spread over an area of 450 acre in the sleepy little town of Mullanpur Garibdas, has been in the news for wrong reasons with landowners complaining of inadequate compensation being given to them by the state government.

One such landowner, Himmat Singh, said he had received a notice stating that his land would be acquired at Rs 1.30 crore per acre, whereas, the state government was giving compensation at the rate of Rs 1.50 crore per acre in other areas. He said, "The state government should follow a uniform policy when it comes to land acquisition as this may lead to a lot of resentment among those whose land would be acquired."

Those landowners who were not satisfied with the state government's acquisition policy have moved court and the matter is now pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court which has given a stay on the process of acquisition for the Urban Estate. Nearly 115 acre in the 450 acre project is mired in litigation and it may take a fairly long time for the process of acquisition to be resumed once again.

Mullanpur residents like Gurpreet Singh, feel that those who had moved court were short-sighted and an obstacle in the road to prosperity for the area. He said, "These people need to realize that for their personal gains, entire Mullanpur would suffer and there would be no development in the area."

Situated barely 15 kilometre from Chandigarh, Mullanpur Urban Estate is slated to have 1,500 plots and according to sources in GMADA, each and every legal aspect is being carefully evaluated and the project may still be held up for another two to three months.