KIADB clears Hebbal land for builders at ‘dirt-cheap price’

Bengaluru: Namma Metro is all set to lose control over 45 acres of land in Hebbal, as the Karnataka Industries Area Development Board (KIADB) has initiated the process of issuing a demand notice to Lake View Tourism Corporation, a private entity, for compensating the original landowners. The notice would legitimise the corporation’s contested claim over the land — despite its failure to pay compensation for 20 years.

Sources indicate that KIADB, despite several questions being raised, plans to issue the notice on Wednesday following legal scrutiny. The corporation is reportedly backed by private developers, one of whom is in financial distress.

The buzz is that the notice seeks payment of Rs 12.10 crore per acre for 37 acres, amounting to a total of Rs 448 crore. This price was fixed about two-and-a-half years ago when the government extended the corporation’s expired lease agreement. The land is currently in KIADB’s custody.

The low payout is expected to shock landowners, as the current market value in Hebbal is no less than Rs 60 crore per acre.

Rudrappa, one of the affected landowners, called the compensation “illegal.” “The High Court has already directed KIADB to pay land losers on par with the latest market rates. I have the ruling in my favour,” he said. Drawing a comparison with BMRCL, which acquired a parcel for the Metro project at Rs 20,000 per square foot, he asked why any owner would give up land in the same vicinity for just Rs 3,000 per square foot. The KIADB, he said, is helping a builder profit by acquiring land from ordinary citizens at throwaway prices.

Pvt entity’s gain, Metro’s loss

With the government moving to hand over a major chunk of this land to private developers, both Namma Metro and citizens stand to lose.

In March last year, Namma Metro sought about 45 acres in Hebbal, including the above-mentioned 37 acres, for a depot, multi-modal hub, parking facility, and other infrastructure. The requirement was recently slashed to just nine acres, reportedly bowing to the real estate lobby that is expected to make a windfall profit overnight.

This decision came despite MPs Shobha Karandlaje, P C Mohan, and Tejasvi Surya urging the Congress-led state government to allocate the entire 45 acres for the depot, which would have reduced operational costs and improved frequency on the proposed Hebbal–Sarjapura Metro line.

Despite public demand, a meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh formally decided to allocate only nine acres to Metro. The decision comes even as BMRCL struggles to find large vacant plots for depots.

Many suspect the deal is far from transparent and against public interest, given the fact that Lake View Tourism Corporation has defaulted on compensation to landowners for two decades. There is also a buzz that the private firm is planning to allocate nine acres to the BMRCL on land that should technically be considered open space for allowing commercial ventures such as shopping malls.