Ramanagara: The political battle over the proposed Bidadi Township project intensified on Sunday, with the JDS and BJP launching a three-day march against the Congress government’s plan, while Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar defended the project and accused the opposition of misleading farmers.
Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and BJP leader R. Ashoka flagged off the march from Bairamangala village in Ramanagara taluk. Led by JDS state youth wing president Nikhil Kumaraswamy, the march will cover around 38 km before reaching Bengaluru’s Freedom Park under the slogan ‘Our land, our rights’.
The JDS-BJP combine is demanding that the township project be scrapped, alleging that it would affect farmers and their land. Before the march, Nikhil met former Prime Minister and JDS national president H.D. Deve Gowda and sought his blessings. Deve Gowda urged him to remain firm in the farmers’ interest.
Meanwhile, Shivakumar said the Bidadi project, which had remained stalled for years, was being revived with plans to develop a modern AI city featuring world-class roads, metro connectivity, a stadium, parks and housing facilities.
The Chief Minister said farmers’ interests would be protected and claimed the government would provide compensation of more than ₹3 crore per acre, compared with ₹25 lakh fixed by the previous government.
He added that farmers opting for land pooling would be offered 50% of the developed land in exchange for their land and clarified that participation in the land acquisition process would be voluntary, with no farmer to be forced to give up land.