Land in Bidar for HAL project may get Cabinet nod

The ambitious plan of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to set up a manufacturing unit for its Advanced Utility Helicopter (AUH) will come up before the Cabinet on Thursday. The land identified for the project in Bidar will be discussed.

HAL is likely to get the approval for the project with Defence Minister A K Antony already having expressed interest in it.

Former chief minister and Bidar Congress MP Dharam Singh, who has been backing the project, has already held discussions with Antony in this regard.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, he said, “I met Antony three months ago and requested him to allow this project to come up in Bidar. The district will hugely benefit from this project. It will also help generate employment. Antony has promised that his ministry will give the clearances, if the State government helps in securing land for the project. The district also has an airport. So, I said priority should be given to Bidar.”

Singh said he had also held discussions with Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda about the proposal. “Gowda seemed very positive about the project. The district has been neglected for a long time now,” he said.

The MP said there was availability of revenue land at two to three places in the district, including Aurad and Bhalki, for the project.

Hotel at BIA

Another project to set up a hotel at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) is also proposed to be discussed by the Cabinet. Sources in the Infrastructure Development Department said the government was looking to set up a hotel to help host high profile delegates close to the airport.

Lake development

The Lake Development Authority draft Bill, which has gone through a series of changes since 2006, will finally come up before the Cabinet for approval.

The Bill, if enacted, will give more teeth to the Lake Development Authority, which is comatose presently.

The LDA will be empowered to take action against encroachers of lakes or those violating the rules.

The Bill details stringent action against violators, including custodians of the lakes like BDA, BBMP, BMRDA and other urban local bodies. Those found violating the rules can be imprisoned, said officials.

It is said that as per the latest revision, minor irrigation tanks will not come under the purview of the Bill. Officials said only those water bodies that come under the city corporation areas, town municipal areas and urban development authority areas will be manned by LDA.

RTE rules

The long pending draft Bill of the RTE rules is also likely to come up before the Cabinet for approval. The Centre has been pressuring the government to implement the rules framed in 2009 through legislation. As per the Act, which has been implemented in a few states already, private schools will be forced to provide 25 per cent of their seats for students from underprivileged classes.

Other issues that may come up for discussion include the implementation of the Urban Property Ownership Records (UPOR) project. The Revenue department is looking forward to create and update ownership records of all properties in the State and is planning to create a framework for managing these records. The department is implementing UPOR project on a pilot basis in Mangalore, Bellary, Mysore, Hubli-Dharwar and Shimoga on a public private partnership basis.

A proper system will be created to accurately record both spatial and non-spatial details of the properties. The property records will serve as trusted records for all transactions.