Greater Noida Authority accelerates land acquisition for industries

The Greater Noida Authority is gearing up to enhance its efforts in consolidating land banks, facing challenges in acquiring land from protesting farmers. Currently, the Authority has successfully acquired 57% of the total 2,222 acres designated for eight new industrial sectors. Despite having a land bank of 645 acres ready for allocation to over 340 allottees, officials revealed that in the past six months, 56 acres have been freed, with some portions allotted for new residential schemes. Additionally, 42 acres were purchased in the last year. The industrial sectors, located in Ecotech 7, 8, 9, 12A, 16, 19, 19A, and 21 sectors, involve land acquisition from 20 villages. Ecotech 12A is the largest sector at 472 acres, followed by Ecotech 9 (420 acres), Ecotech 8 (398 acres), and Ecotech 7 (269 acres). The remaining sectors range from 100 to 200 acres, with official data indicating that 1,272 hectares out of the total 2,222 acres have been procured. A senior official highlighted ongoing discussions with farmers to ensure the acquisition of remaining lands with their consent, emphasising the goal of making sufficient land available for companies that have signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with the Authority and are eager to establish factories. Furthermore, the Gati Shakti scheme has allocated Rs 2.31 billion for the development of two industrial sectors, Ecotech 8 and 9, with a total development cost of approximately Rs 13.5 billion. Additionally, Rs 1.604 billion has been sanctioned for the development of the existing Ecotech 10. Presently, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) has 645 acres available, divided into 344 plots across various categories, including industrial, commercial, institutional, IT/ITES, group housing, and residential. Official data indicates that 155 acres are available for the industry category, with room for 80 companies to be allotted land in this sector.