Compensation to be given before acquiring land for roads: Civic Chief

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Before taking possession of land for road widening, property owners will receive compensation in advance, clarified municipal corporation administrator G Sreekanth on Friday. Those who want cash compensation will receive it, while those who prefer TDR can opt for that. However, those who have done unauthorised plot regularisation (under Gunthewari Act) will not be eligible for compensation. Also, people who lose their entire house in road widening will be provided with alternate housing.

In a press conference, the municipal corporation administrator explained that there are six types of land acquisition mechanisms. They include Transferable Development Rights (TDR), Floor Space Index (FSI), Gunthewari, Cash Compensation, Reservation Credit Certificate (RCC) and Accommodation Reservation.

He said that during the road widening drive, unauthorised structures were demolished, but the land was not taken over immediately. Preparation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for road works is currently underway via PADECO, a consulting agency. If a person still has some land remaining after road impact, they are encouraged to regularize it via Gunthewari. Notably, they will not get compensation for the part lost to road construction.

Only vacant plotowners or those without construction on the affected area will be eligible for compensation. TDR is not mandatory; cash will also be offered to those who choose it. The CSMC has received a list of 148 houses from MHADA. Citizens who lose their entire home will be offered a house for ₹1 lakh. However, no displaced citizen has yet applied for alternate housing, Shrikant noted.

Single-step Gunthewari and property tax process

Previously, for a house to be regularised under Gunthewari, it had to be assessed for property tax first. After getting the Gunthewari certificate, double property tax was later converted to single tax. Now, tax officers will be placed directly in the Gunthewari section, and both tax assessment and regularisation will be done in one go, said the administrator.