The Supreme Court of India(SCI) on Tuesday February 02,2016 gave the green signal to
Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) to lay down natural gas pipelines
cutting across 7 districts of Tamil Nadu and dismissed the State
government’s objections as merely “populist”
The Tamil Nadu Government has been arguing that the pipelines affect the
livelihood of about 5,500 small farmers. It has contended that “national
interest” should not be at the cost of the lives and livelihood of
large number of poor farmers. It suggested that pipes should be aligned
along the national highways instead of near the homes and lands of
farmers which would only render agricultural operations commercially
unviable and leave the land virtually worthless
“We
are not against farmers. But you can’t prevent the gas pipeline project
which is in national interest. If you (State) have any problem you
should have taken up the matter with the Centre, but you have no
authority to direct GAIL to alter the alignment,” a Bench of Chief
Justice of India T.S. Thakur and Justices A.K. Sikri and R. Banumathi
said.
Upholding the Madras High Court challenged by
the State, the Bench observed that Tamil Nadu has no technical expertise
or legal authority to ask GAIL to change its pipeline route.
GAIL’s counsel and senior advocate Dhruv Mehta said the pipeline has already been laid for 200 km at a cost of Rs. 685 crore.
Noting
that once land has been acquired under the law for a public project in
national interest, it is understood to be vested with the government, as
in this case, and not with the private owners concerned.
“You
supported farmers’ agitation against the project because votes are
involved. You have gone by the sentiments of farmers,” the court told
senior advocate Subramonium Prasad representing Tamil Nadu.
It pointed out that only a handful has challenged the payment of compensation.
It pointed out that only a handful has challenged the payment of compensation.
Softening its stand subsequently, the Bench directed the State to re-work the value of lands in the seven districts as on January 1, 2016 so that GAIL could pay 10 % of the value as compensation and an additional 30 % of the amount so determined.
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