Greater Noida land acquisition

As the May R&M issue was almost locked, news broke about the Supreme Court order that is likely to clear the shadow of uncertainty over more than 100 private housing projects in Greater Noida and Noida Extension. By ruling that no land acquisition proceedings will be quashed any further, the apex court not only brought relief to thousands of home buyers, it also spread cheer among the developers operating in the area. Of course, it also dealt a blow to farmers who were hoping to get their land back.

The Supreme Court on May 14 upheld land acquisition by the Greater Noida Authority between 2006 and 2009 in the Greater Noida West area, also known as Noida Extension, dismissing all petitions filed by farmers, saying that no land will be returned. In the process, the court upheld an earlier order by the Allahabad High Court, which had said that land will not be given back to farmers but had asked the two Authorities to raise the compensation by 64.7 per cent to Rs 1 ,400 per sq yard and give 10 per cent of the developed land to farmers.

Granting a virtual go-ahead to builders to carry out construction without worrying about the fate of the land acquired, a Bench headed by Chief Justice HL Dattu said the conditions set by the Allahabad High Court while upholding the acquisition hold good and there will be no further stipulations.

Reacting promptly to the apex court verdict, Deepak Kapoor, President of Credai Western Up, said with this fears of many buyer/investors have been laid to rest. “The land acquisition issue which was haunting the Greater Noida West is now finally settled,” Kapoor told Realty & More. He added that “buyers and the developers operating in Greater Noida West can now work towards their dreams of developing the projects and handing it over to the buyers.” Supertech Chairman RK Arora, “There was a cloud of uncertainty looming over the real estate sector for the last couple of years due to multiple litigations over land acquisition in Greater Noida pending in various courts, all of which has reached finality with this order.”

He added, “This is a very positive development capable of restoring confidence of investors and a favorable sentiment in real estate sector.” Gaursons India MD Manoj Gaur found the order as being “in favour of everyone, including buyers, investors, developers and farmers.” He said, “The court has kept intact the order for increased compensation and the promise of developed area as it is. With this order the doubts in
the minds of buyers/investors have come to an end. Now the area can witness fast paced development and soon we will see the shape of area that is promised to be haven for affordable housing”. Agreeing with him, Anil Kumar Sharma, CMD of Amrapali Group, said, “The decision has
taken care of all stakeholders such as farmers, middle-class homebuyers and the financial institutions.”