Tikait raises issues of farmers affected due to upcoming Noida Airport

Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait on Thursday participated in a farmers' event in Jewar in western Uttar Pradesh and demanded that local authorities provide adequate compensation to villagers who will be affected by the upcoming Noida International Airport.

The farmer leader also held interactions with officials of the Noida Authority and the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA), the government agencies and stakeholders in the mega Greenfield project.

Work is underway for the Noida International Airport in Jewar area of Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar district, some 80 km off Delhi.

"The airport project has affected the local people in Jewar. They have been assured some compensation in lieu of their acquired land but we are demanding that adequate compensation should be ensured by the local authorities," Tikait told reporters.

"Several villagers are being rehabilitated but some issues have come up about the areas and facilities being provided to them in their location of resettlement. Those should also be addressed by the officials," the farmer leader said.

He said there is also a need to provide alternative ways to the local people whose regular routes have been obstructed due to the construction work for the airport.

Noida Authority's Officer on Special Duty (land) Prasun Dwivedi, who held discussions with Tikait and other prominent farmers during the Kisan Mahapanchayat, said the issues related to monetary and plot compensation were discussed during the meeting.

"There will be meetings in coming days to discuss the issue further," the PCS officer, who had previously been the sub-divisional magistrate of Jewar, said.

According to officials involved in the project, the first phase of the Noida International Airport is scheduled to be completed by September 2024 with one runway and a capacity of handling 1.20 crore passengers annually.

The airport is billed to be India's largest upon full completion. It will be spread over 5,000 hectares. The first phase will be spread over 1,300 hectares, according to officials.