Karnataka Cabinet to Allot Sites to 1,453 BMIC Project Land Losers in Bidadi

The Karnataka cabinet on Thursday decided to allot residential sites to 1,453 farmers who gave up their land for the Bengaluru-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project in the Bidadi sector. Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara announced the decision in Bengaluru following the cabinet meeting.

Parameshwara, who heads the Cabinet sub-committee on the BMIC project, stated that the panel held eight meetings to examine the issue in detail. He noted that Thursday's decision focused solely on site distribution, resolving most pending matters concerning Sector-A in Bidadi. Other corridor-related matters, such as toll collection, townships, intersections, and the link road, will be addressed in later phases.

Explaining the history of the issue, Parameshwara said farmers surrendered their lands without protests when the original Framework Agreement was signed. A subsequent decision was made at the District Commissioner level alongside project promoter NICE, which agreed to provide sites. However, because the allotment was not originally part of the formal agreement, the process suffered delays.

The Deputy Commissioner and the committee had previously assured farmers of one 30x40 square foot site for landholdings up to one acre, and a 60x40 site for holdings larger than one acre. Affected farmers had been demanding the execution of this promise, leading to a Supreme Court observation that the state government could take an executive decision through the Cabinet in its wisdom.

Parameshwara stated that while 1,453 farmers lost land, only 574 sites are currently ready, consisting of 231 plots measuring 30x40 and 243 plots measuring 40x60. To bridge the gap, another 879 sites will be developed across Varahasandra, Madavara, Kodigenahalli, and Srikantapura Linganandanahalli.

NICE will provide the land required for the additional plots, and the sites are scheduled to be handed over to farmers within two months. Parameshwara added that the state government made the decision on humanitarian grounds despite the commitment not being formally drafted into the original agreement.