APIIC offers alternative site to Brighton Energy

Though there is much process left before it becomes an Act of Parliament, the new draft land Bill has already roused hopes of getting higher compensation among the farmers at Nakkapally near the coastal city of Visakhapatnam.

Now, they are willing to negotiate with the government only after the new land Legislation is passed.

Incidentally, this land is part of a site shown to Brighton Energy, a US-based heavy equipment and forged steel manufacturing company, which had entered into an MoU with the state government to set up a nuclear power plant equipment manufacturing facility on 800 acre adjoining the sea coast.

“Earlier, these farmers had given their informal consent for parting their land at Rs 3-4 lakh an acre to our officials. Now, this area is dotted by Red flags. Farmers say they want compensation under the provisions of the new land Bill,” BR Meena, vice-chairman and managing director of Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC), told Business Standard.

With no sign of finding a middle ground anytime soon, the APIIC has informed the company to move the project to some other location in the district while offering a couple of options.

As Brighton representatives had already spent close to one year in scouting for a suitable land in coastal areas, they have no choice but to chose an alternative location in the hope of securing the land at least in the next few months.

One of these new locations is expected to be finalised once the Brighton management gives consent for the same, according to a local representative of the company.

A senior industry department official said they had to find alternative ways to facilitate the project as the state had already been going through a political turmoil, sending adverse signals to the investor community.

“We know that the new land Bill is complicating the matters as far as land acquisition is concerned. But there are ways to overcome these problems,” the official said.

Brighton is the only large manufacturing project with a proposed investment of $ 600 million that had come to the state in the last couple of years. Though the state government went all out to woo the Peugeot car project early this year, the latter chose Gujarat last month.

Brighton had approached the government with an intent to implement the project in a short span of 24-30 months to be able to deliver the orders already in its kitty. The company sought 800 acre land for the project, including ancillaries apart from other support.