Politics · India Bureau
Centre clarifies no land acquisition sought for Hyderabad high-speed rail corridors
Union Coal Minister G Kishan Reddy has denied that the Centre has requested land acquisition from state governments for three proposed high-speed rail projects centred on Hyderabad, stating that any such acquisitions at this stage would be unauthorised.
LSN India ·
The clarification from Minister Reddy on Saturday addresses growing concerns over land acquisition efforts being undertaken by the Telangana government for rail infrastructure and other development projects. Farmers on the outskirts of Hyderabad have mounted resistance against these land acquisition drives, raising questions about the status and authorisation of such activities.
Reddy stated that alignment studies are currently underway for three high-speed rail corridors—connecting Hyderabad to Chennai, Bangalore, and Pune respectively. He emphasised that the Centre has not issued any formal land acquisition requisitions to the relevant state authorities for these projects.
"Any land acquisition being carried out in the name of High-Speed Rail at this stage is illegal," Reddy said in his statement. He noted that he had discussed the three proposed corridors with Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who corroborated that no acquisition requests have been transmitted to state governments.
The minister's comments suggest that alignment and feasibility studies remain in preliminary phases, with formal land acquisition procedures yet to be formally initiated by the central government.