Previous governments in Uttar Pradesh did not favour development in Noida and Greater Noida which is why many firms migrated out of the state leaving no job opportunities for locals, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed on Wednesday.
The chief minister said this while meeting over two dozen farmers representing hundreds others from Jewar who have given their consent for the acquisition of their land for a proposed international greenfield airport in the region.
The farmers were accompanied BJP MLA from Jewar Dhirendra Singh for the meeting at Shastri Bhawan in Lucknow.
"Noida and Greater Noida were seen as areas of bad reputation by the previous governments. No industrialist wanted to set up their industry there out of panic. Several businesses migrated to Gurgaon in Haryana.
"A big project like Maruti car, which could have provided work to thousands of locals, slipped away from Noida-Greater Noida," Adityanath was quoted as saying in a statement.
"Understand the true meaning of development and think about how we can improve our living standards, how to realise the dreams of our young children and keeping positive thinking, how to become a partner in the development of this region and become a stakeholder in the growth story," Adityanath told the farmers.
During the meeting which continued for around 40 minutes, the villagers handed over to the chief minister their consent letters for the land acquisition for building the airport.
According to the statement issued by the Jewar MLA, the farmers told the CM, "We have given our land on your call and for the development of the region. Neither have we brought any letter of demands nor are we demanding something from you right now, but it is of course that you will safeguard the interests of farmers and ensure their proper rehabilitation and resettlement."
Adityanath expressed gratitude to the farmers and said his government would sort out their legitimate demands and issues regarding rehabilitation policy.
During a visit to Gautam Buddh Nagar in the first week of August, the chief minister had held a closed-door meeting with farmers from Jewar for the proposed airport to be built on 5,000 hectare land.
Following initial resistance by farmers over inadequate compensation and concerns over the rehabilitation and resettlement policy, Chairman of Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) Prabhat Kumar on August 16 had said the project could be dropped if the farmers donot give their consent.
Over 1,300 hectare of land from five villages -- Rohi, Parohi, Dayanatpur, Ranhera and Kishorpur - is to be acquired for the airport project's the first phase, which in total is estimated to cost between Rs 15,000 crore and Rs 20,000 crore.
Amid intense dialogue between affected farmers and the district administration, the YEIDA and the local MLA, 71 per cent landowners gave their consent for acquisition of land on September 15, clearing way for the first phase of the project.
According to the provisions of Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, consent of at least 70 per cent of landowners is mandatory for the government to proceed with acquisition of land for any such projects.
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