Uttarakhand
,
Doiwala
,
Dehradun
Published : 12 July, 2014   |   Last updated - 24 Jun, 2024
As farmers protest aerocity in Uttarakhand's Doiwala, MLA denies township plan
Reported by
Chicu Lokgariwar
Legal Review by
Anmol Gupta
Updated by
Anupa Kujur
1814
Households affected
8709
People Affected
2023
Year started
3081
Land area affected
1814
Households affected
8709
People Affected
2023
Year started
3081
Land area affected
Key Insights
Sector
Infrastructure
Reason/Cause of conflict
Township/Real Estate
Conflict Status
Ongoing
Ended
Legal Status
Region Classification
Urban and Rural
Ended
1
Summary

Doiwala is a small town between Rishikesh and Dehradun. Despite its proximity to the state capital of Uttarakhand, Doiwala retains a proud agricultural character.

The Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun is Uttarakhand’s largest airport and has undergone recent expansion despite massive public protests against the felling of 10,000 trees in Thano forest. The present government plans to further expand the airport and introduce international flights.

With a view to accommodate this proposed expansion, the present CM had announced the creation of a township, modelled on Delhi’s aerocity in Doiwala. In June 2023, several media outlets reported that the state government had sought and received approval from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for constructing this Integrated Township. This aerocity is proposed to extend over 3080.0 hectares, of which 2,333 hectares of land would need to be acquired from citizens. It was also reported that teams from the ministry would be inspecting sites shortly and work would being soon.

Meanwhile, Jai Bharat TV also showed images of some documents which appeared to be part of a presentation detailing the township.

This news was met with protests from the farmers in the proposed area. They mobilised together and organised a Kisan Mahapanchayat in July 2023. This meeting was attended by members of several political parties, farmers unions and the press. The farmers vowed to not give their land for this project and presented a memorandum to that effect to the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM). This was followed by a tractor rally in which over 250 farmers participated.

In August 2023, the Chief Town Planner issued a press release denying any plans to construct a township in Doiwala. In an interview to a local channel Jai Bharat TV, the SDM confirmed the validity of this press release. MLA from Rishikesh Prem Chand Aggarwal also stated that the government has clearly said that no farmer's land will be taken and the government has no intention of building a township in Doiwala.

However, uncertainty prevails among the farmers remain as there has been no statement by CM Pushkar Singh Dhami supporting this denial.

2
Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Refusal to give up land for the project

Demand to cancel the project

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban and Rural

Type of Land

Private

Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land), Non-Forest (Grazing Land)

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Project stalled due to protests

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land, Other environmental services, Grazing

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Yes

Source/Reference

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyX0NIgFDCo

Total investment involved (in Crores):

1100

Type of investment:

Investment Expected

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

No

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Author
Reported by
Chicu Lokgariwar

Uttarakhand

Kumar Sambhav is a social entrepreneur and award-winning journalist, leading innovative research in accountability investigations. He is the founder of Land Conflict Watch and is currently working as India Research Lead with Princeton University’s Digital Witness Lab.

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Fact sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Refusal to give up land for the project

Demand to cancel the project

As farmers protest aerocity in Uttarakhand's Doiwala, MLA denies township plan

Reported by

Chicu Lokgariwar

Legal Review by

Anmol Gupta

Edited by

Anupa Sagar Kujur

Updated by

Updated by

Published on

February 20, 2024

February 23, 2024

Edited on

February 20, 2024

Sector

Infrastructure

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Township/Real Estate

Starting Year

2023

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

3081

ha

Households Affected by Conflict

1814

People Affected by Conflict

8709

State

Uttarakhand

Sector

Infrastructure

People Affected by Conflict

8709

Households Affected by Conflict

1814

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

3081

ha

Starting Year

2023

Location of Conflict

Doiwala

Dehradun

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Township/Real Estate

Land Conflict Summary

Doiwala is a small town between Rishikesh and Dehradun. Despite its proximity to the state capital of Uttarakhand, Doiwala retains a proud agricultural character.

The Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun is Uttarakhand’s largest airport and has undergone recent expansion despite massive public protests against the felling of 10,000 trees in Thano forest. The present government plans to further expand the airport and introduce international flights.

With a view to accommodate this proposed expansion, the present CM had announced the creation of a township, modelled on Delhi’s aerocity in Doiwala. In June 2023, several media outlets reported that the state government had sought and received approval from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for constructing this Integrated Township. This aerocity is proposed to extend over 3080.0 hectares, of which 2,333 hectares of land would need to be acquired from citizens. It was also reported that teams from the ministry would be inspecting sites shortly and work would being soon.

Meanwhile, Jai Bharat TV also showed images of some documents which appeared to be part of a presentation detailing the township.

This news was met with protests from the farmers in the proposed area. They mobilised together and organised a Kisan Mahapanchayat in July 2023. This meeting was attended by members of several political parties, farmers unions and the press. The farmers vowed to not give their land for this project and presented a memorandum to that effect to the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM). This was followed by a tractor rally in which over 250 farmers participated.

In August 2023, the Chief Town Planner issued a press release denying any plans to construct a township in Doiwala. In an interview to a local channel Jai Bharat TV, the SDM confirmed the validity of this press release. MLA from Rishikesh Prem Chand Aggarwal also stated that the government has clearly said that no farmer's land will be taken and the government has no intention of building a township in Doiwala.

However, uncertainty prevails among the farmers remain as there has been no statement by CM Pushkar Singh Dhami supporting this denial.

Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Refusal to give up land for the project

Demand to cancel the project

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban and Rural

Type of Land

Private

Type of Common Land

Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land), Non-Forest (Grazing Land)

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Project stalled due to protests

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land, Other environmental services, Grazing

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Yes

Source/Reference

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyX0NIgFDCo

Total investment involved (in Crores):

1100

Type of investment:

Investment Expected

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

No

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Legal Data

Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict

Legislations/Policies Involved

Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
Section 4(1) [Whenever the Government seeks to acquire land for any public purpose, it shall consult the panchayat in the affected area and conduct a Social Impact Assessment] Section 5 [A public hearing shall be conducted at the affected area to ascertain the views of the affected families, which shall be recorded in the SIA Report]
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    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute

No

What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?

What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?

Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:

No items found.

Legal Status:

Out of Court

Status of Case In Court

Whether any adjudicatory body was approached

No

Name of the adjudicatory body

Name(s) of the Court(s)

Case Number

Main Reasoning/Decision of court

Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:

No items found.

Reported Details of the Violation:

Date of Violation

Location of Violation

Additional Information

Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Uttarakhand Housing and Urban Development Authority

PSUs Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?

Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached

Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?

No

Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:

Kisan Morcha

Information on the use of criminal law

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Resources

Resources Related to Conflict

  • News Articles Related to the Conflict:
  • Documents Related to the Conflict:
  • Links Related to the Conflict:

Images

Screenshot of the press release by the Chief Town Planner, as reported by Jai Bharat TV

Image Credit:  

Jai Bharat TV

Image Credit:  

Video

Jai Bharat TV

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