Seabird project: 'Land acquisition issues will be addressed by Jan.-end'.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said here on Friday that pending issues related to land acquisition for Phase I of Project Seabird at the INS Kadamba Naval Base in Karwar will be addressed by January 31, 2018.

Ms. Sitharaman told presspersons here that during her visit to Karwar on Thursday, she had a detailed review of issues related to payment of compensation to owners of land acquired for the Phase 1 of the project. She said there were a set of cases pending in the court for which the Defence Ministry has already deposited ₹300 crore as directed by court. Direction has been given to the Ministry officials to clear these cases and ensure that the land owners get the compensation at the earliest, she added.

The Minister said there were 1,008 cases under Section 28 (A) of the Land Acquisition Act. Of this, 270 cases have been cleared, while 217 were pending as the documents from the State were yet to reach the Defence Ministry. There are 376 cases pending for want of correction of documents. There are 931 cases under Section 18 of the Act that are pending for want of authentication by the State government. “I have asked the Ministry officials to have sitting either in Bengaluru or Karwar and resolve it by January 31, 2018,” she said.

She said second phase of expansion under Project Seabird was going on in full swing. More spaces will be created for anchoring vessels. Asked of the extent to which the Naval Base will be expanded, Ms. Sitharaman said, “It is difficult for me to say till where, but we have started the second phase of development,” she said, adding that the expansion was in an area acquired by the Defence Ministry. When she visited the Naval Base on Thursday she was accompanied by Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lamba. On Friday, she visited the Coast Guards Karnataka Headquarters in Mangaluru and reviewed the maritime security preparedness.

THE HINDU