Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 28 (PTI) The Keralam government ordered a detailed vigilance probe into alleged irregularities in land acquisition by the KIIFB in Kannur during the previous LDF government’s tenure.
The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister V D Satheesan, a statement issued by his office said.
The move follows Satheesan’s statements in the Assembly on Tuesday and again earlier on Wednesday that the alleged irregularities in KIIFB’s acquisition of nearly 1,000 acres would be investigated.
Satheesan had raised concerns in the Assembly over KIIFB’s proposal to acquire an additional 4,000 acres in Kannur.
The vigilance probe is based on the findings of a report submitted by an expert panel headed by retired IAS officer Sudha Pillai. The UDF government had constituted the panel to review KIIFB’s functioning.
The panel had flagged alleged financial irregularities and procedural lapses in Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board’s land acquisition for industrial infrastructure projects.
Earlier in the day, Satheesan claimed that another expert panel report submitted to the Kerala High Court on the land acquired by KIIFB in Kannur had found that a large portion of it comprised quarried areas where huge quantities of construction waste and plastic had been dumped, rendering the land unfit for construction.
He said the acquired land had remained idle, with only a small portion being used by the government for development work.
Satheesan also alleged that the land had been acquired at five times its actual cost. However, when attempts were made to mortgage it, banks were unwilling to lend even one-fifth of the purchase price, he said.
Responding to the CM’s allegations, Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan and his CPI(M) colleague K N Balagopal said the acquisition had been carried out in accordance with the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, enacted by the Congress-led UPA government.
The two CPI(M) leaders said the Act provided for compensation several times higher than market rates for acquired land.
Vijayan said the land around Kannur airport had been acquired with a long-term perspective, as land might not be available there in the future.
He cited the current situation near the state’s Cochin, Thiruvananthapuram and Calicut airports as examples of the difficulties in securing land around established airports. PTI HMP SSK
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