Purandar Airport : Govt opens vault for Purandar Airport!! How much rupees will farmers get for land acquisition?

Purandar Airport: The proposed Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje International Airport project at Purandar in Pune district has received a major financial boost. In order to speed up the land acquisition process required for this ambitious airport, the Maharashtra government has taken a major decision and has approved a state guarantee for a loan of Rs 6,000 crore to be raised by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC). An official government decision has been issued in this regard.

This decision of the government has paved the way for land acquisition for the airport project. The government’s guarantee will make it easier for MIDC to raise loans from financial institutions, and the proceeds will be used for land acquisition and compensation to farmers. This guarantee given by the government will be valid for one year. During this period, it will be mandatory to complete the loan collection, make funds available and proceed with the land acquisition process. Therefore, the possibility of speeding up the administrative activities is being expressed now. Purandar Airport

The greenfield airport proposed at Purandar area will be a future major transportation hub for Pune city and surrounding areas. About 3,000 acres of land has been planned to be acquired for this project. Earlier on February 10, the state government had given an in-principle approval to raise a loan of Rs 6,000 crore. Now that this loan has been guaranteed, the work of the airport has got a real financial boost.

It has also been decided to set up a separate Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the Purandar Airport project. This organization will consist of MIDC, MADC, CIDCO and PMRDA. All these organizations will jointly manage the implementation and financial responsibilities of the project. As per the plan, the district administration will complete the process of land acquisition and transfer it to MIDC. After that, the responsibility of implementing further development works and projects will be on the respective organizations. The Cabinet had already given fund raising powers to MIDC. Purandar Airport

According to sources, many administrative processes related to land acquisition are almost complete. However, the actual land acquisition process could not be started as the compensation rates given to the farmers have not been finalized yet. Now after getting the guarantee from the government, the officials are expecting that the process of fixing the compensation rates will be completed quickly.

CIDCO will bear the maximum share of 51 percent in the debt repayment responsibility. After that, MADC will contribute 19 percent, while MIDC and PMRDA will contribute 15 percent each. Although MIDC has been designated as the lead borrower, the repayment burden is to be shared among all entities in the SPV. According to officials, the MIDC will now have to immediately raise the loan and transfer the amount to the district administration, so that the compensation can be distributed to the landowners. If in future the SPV has difficulty in repaying the loan, the state government will intervene and clear the arrears.