Unrest in hi-tech zone: Protests threaten to roil Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah's ambitions for rural Bengaluru
Bengaluru: The Siddaramaiah administration finds itself caught between the compulsion to give plots of land to tech multinationals in Devanahalli taluk near the international airport in Bengaluru and the raging farmer protests seeking to block land acquisition. The agitation has passed 1,150 days and is only intensifying by the day.
The government had identified 1,777 acres for acquisition across 13 villages to build a high-tech industrial park, but the efforts have hit a roadblock with farmers raising a red flag. 'The close proximity of the proposed park to the airport and to the satellite ring road is what makes it the most sought-after site for global technology majors,' an official said, declining to be identified.
The
Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board
(KIADB), an arm of the government, buys plots from farmers and hands them over to investors with clear titles. 'That is one of the reasons why companies come to Karnataka. They just need to deal with the government, not landowners for their land needs unlike in states like West Bengal,' he added.
Investors press for land in Devanahalli and Doddaballapur taluks in Bengaluru Rural district, considering their strategic location and an evolving tech manufacturing ecosystem. Devanahalli is also home to Foxconn's second largest factory outside of China, as well as the facilities of Airbus, Boeing and Rolls-Royce.
The government is trying to push ahead with the development projects, which it hopes will create tens of thousands of jobs in the region, benefitting the locals.
The information technology investment region and the defence and aerospace park as well as the upcoming tech ecosystem in the vicinity have morphed the place also into a haven for real estate developers, say officials.
Big-Ticket Investments
Officials leading the investment efforts are pitching plots in and around Devanahalli for big-ticket projects, highlighting the plusses the region holds. Karnataka competes fiercely for investments with the neighbouring Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, and the ruling Congress comes under attack every time the state loses out on a potential investment.
Devanahalli is represented in the assembly by food minister KH Muniyappa, who along with industries minister MB Patil held a meeting with protestors on Tuesday and agreed to spare 495 acres of land in Channarayapatna hobli from acquisition. The climb-down has barely bought peace for the government. Farmers have also rejected the offer to return 10,500 sq ft of developed land per acre of acquisition.
The agitation predates the Congress regime as the contentious industrial parks were planned by the previous BJP government. The protests began in April 2022 soon after the KIADB issued a preliminary notification to acquire land. South Indian actor Prakash Raj, who led the farmer march to the CM's residence on Wednesday, said Siddaramaiah had pledged support to their cause while in the opposition, but hastened the acquisition process after becoming the CM.
As government agencies identify plots around the international airport suitable for industrial development, they are also facing quiet competition from real estate developers, some of whom are said to be chasing the same plots pitched to global investors, elbowing their way in as protests escalate.
The CM has decided to meet the farmer leaders in Bengaluru on July 4 to find ways to end the stir as it is showing signs of going out of hand. The industries department, meanwhile, finds itself on the edge because it has already promised swathes of land in Devanahalli for global giants, but the same plots are now at the epicentre of protests.
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