UP govt sanctions Rs 295-crore compensation Gokul Barrage-hit villages

Uttar Pradesh government has sanctioned Rs 295 crore as compensation to the people of six revenue villages in the state whose land has been inundated due to construction of Gokul Barrage on Yamuna river here.

"While Rs 397 crore was distributed earlier as the compensation against the land of five revenue villages inundated due to the barrage, remaining lands were identified afterwords," Special Land Acquisition Officer Ram Sevak Dwivedi said.

"The money has been sanctioned by the government. While the compensation of the cases without any rider would be distributed first, the farmers, whose cases are pending in the courts would get the compensation only after the settlement of their cases," he said.

"Previous governments in the state did not pay any heed to the demand of the farmers. However, Akhilesh government took notice of the plight of farmers and decided to pay compensation," District Vice-President of Samajwadi Party Lok Mani Jadon said.