The J&K administration has cleared the pathway for the expansion of Jammu airport, a proposal that has been hanging fire from the last seventeen years.
According to reports, the chief secretary BVR Subrahmanyam’s office has cleared a proposal for the rehabilitation of 61 families whose land,a and subsequent litigations, stopped the expansion of Jammu airport for nearly two decades.
“After the approval of the Chief Secretary, the plan has been forwarded to the Finance Department for sanction and release of required funds. It will be tabled for approval in the next meeting of Administrative Council headed by Lieutenant Governor G C Murmu,” reports said.
The administration has prepared a rehabilitation plan for 61 families, with each affected family being given 6 to 8 marlas of land in Sunjwan area on Jammu outskirts.
“Each family will be given Rs 1.62 lakh as initiation amount for start of construction work. Since the area identified for the rehabilitation of affected families is the Government land, not much financial implication is required and only allotment is to be made”, reports quoting sources said, adding “the Finance Department has been asked to release funds for providing initiation amount for start of construction work and development of basic facilities like roads, power and water at the site of the rehabilitation”.
Land measuring 27 kanals and 2 marlas were identified for expansion of Jammu airport in 2003-04. The final award in the matter was made in 2008 and accordingly the Airport Authority of India deposited Rs 5.32 crore with the District Collector, Jammu for acquisition of the land at Narwal Pain and Satwari.
“A total of 61 families were occupying two separate patches of land in these areas and due to various court cases and failure of the authorities to carry out the rehabilitation of the families being affected, the handing over of the land was delayed. This also resulted into inordinate delay in the completion of the project,” reports said.
In the recent past, the Revenue Department in consultation with the Deputy Commissioner Jammu prepared a Rehabilitation Plan for all the 61 affected families and placed the same before the Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyum for his approval, reported Daily Excelsior quoting sources.
“After the approval of the Chief Secretary the Rehabilitation Plan has been forwarded to the Finance Department for sanction and release of required funds”, sources said while disclosing that in the recent Committee of Secretaries (CoS) meeting the Chief Secretary directed the Principal Secretary, Revenue Department to pursue with the Finance Department for early submission of Rehabilitation Plan for affected families on account of expansion of Jammu airport to the Administrative Council.
As part of rehabilitation proposal, Rs 1.5 lakh per affected family for eight most economical weaker families was disbursed by the Deputy Commissioner Jammu Sushma Chauhan two days back,” reports said.